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San Francisco Giants Rookie Got Back on Track Against Milwaukee Brewers

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San Francisco Giants Rookie Got Back on Track Against Milwaukee Brewers


On the cusp of being officially eliminated from the 2024 MLB postseason race, the San Francisco Giants are going to just be playing out this final stretch in what has been a very disappointing campaign.

The most important thing for the team over the final few weeks of the year will be getting their young guys as much experience as possible at the Major League level.

That will improve the team’s overall outlook heading into 2025, and potentially fill some holes that may need to be addressed.

One of the players who will be looking to finish the season strong is pitcher Hayden Birdsong.

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The starting pitcher had a great start to his Major League career, recording a 2.97 ERA over six appearances. Unfortunately, he has spent the majority of the second half trying to find his way again.

In six conseucitve starts beginning on July 27, he failed to complete five innings. His ERA was a ghastly 8.31 and he went 0-5.

Lack of command with his fastball was dooming him. Self-inflicted damage was piling up as he walked 20 batters over 21.2 innings. Giving the opponents scoring opportunities and rapidly building up his pitch count led to an inability to work deep into games.

That was something he wanted to change, and quickly.

Ahead of his start on Thursday against the Milwaukee Brewers, Birdsong revealed the goal he had for the rest of the 2024 season.

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“I just want to eat innings and stop killing the bullpen,” he said last week per MLB.com.

Not many people were expecting that to happen against the Brewers, who are running away with the National League Central and are closing in on clinching a playoff berth.

But, that is exactly what happened.

Against the strong opponent, Birdsong had the best start of his career. He was able to find a rhythm, tossing five shutout innings and needing only 68 pitches to do it.

Four strikeouts were recorded as he scattered two hits and one walk. Getting ahead of batters was key to his success.

He threw a first-pitch strike to 11 out of 17 batters. That 65% clip was a major improvement from the 46.7% he had over his last six outings.

A first-pitch strike is essentially what determines the at-bat for Birdsong.

As shared by Maria Guardado of MLB.com, “… opposing batters entered Thursday with a .642 OPS when they’ve fallen behind 0-1 against him, compared to a .910 OPS when they’ve gotten ahead 1-0.”

If the young righty can get ahead in the count, he is putting opponents at a distinct disadvantage.

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“It was nice to actually just be in the zone from first pitch to last pitch,” Birdsong said. “Obviously, I had a walk, but it didn’t bother me at that point because I was in the zone for the whole game. That’s all I really wanted to do. I want to keep doing that and keep showing that I can pitch through five and beyond. Today, I was really happy with what I did. Hopefully, we keep that going.”

The Giants were unable to take advantage of the strong start, as they lost the game 3-0, but the most important takeaway was that Birdsong showcased his immense talent against a very good opponent and could have built his confidence going forward after a rough stretch.





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San Francisco, CA

At a San Francisco Shelter for Unhoused Families, Cooking Helps Heal Trauma | KQED

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At a San Francisco Shelter for Unhoused Families, Cooking Helps Heal Trauma | KQED


“That level of insecurity in their home lives makes it really difficult for them to concentrate on whatever amazing instruction the teachers have in store for them once they get here every day,” Moran said.

As principal of a community school, Moran said her job is to make sure that students’ basic needs are met so they can learn better. That means partnering with local food, health care and housing organizations and turning the campus into a hub for easy access to services its immigrant and low-income student population needs.

Giving kids a safe place to sleep and a predictable routine can help lessen their anxiety. The shelter also focuses on the parents’ mental health by connecting them to social services and job training programs to help them get back on their feet.

To boost their morale, parents at the shelter are able to cook a meal together twice a month.

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Cooking gives the parents agency and helps lift their self-esteem, said the shelter’s manager, Jacqui Portillo.

“They feel relaxed, they feel connected, they’re accomplished, they did something,” Portillo said.

Dolores Street Community Services director Jacqueline Portillo (right) speaks with KQED reporter Daisy Nguyen at Buena Vista Horace Mann Community School on June 10. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)

“The parent has to be okay in order to support their kids,” she said. “And this little moment is helping them to really be more engaged with the kids.”

On a recent visit, several shelter residents volunteered to make red pozole – a spicy and hearty Mexican soup. Reporters Daisy Nguyen and Carlos Cabrera-Lomeli spoke with two moms at the shelter, who explained what cooking does for them.

Maria Figueroa

Figueroa migrated from Tijuana, Mexico, in July 2023 with her 18-year-old daughter and 10-year-old son. She said it was too dangerous to raise her children in Mexico and is seeking political asylum in the U.S. When she arrived in San Francisco, she enrolled her kids in school and went back to school herself to train to be an in-home caregiver for sick and elderly people.

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Figueroa said her kids often ask when they will get to taste her cooking again.

“I tell them, ‘God willing, when we have our own little place’ because, to be honest, we just can’t cook like that here [all the time] … only when an opportunity like this comes up,” she said.

A woman wearing a black hooded sweatshirt pours soup into a large pot in a kitchen.
Shelter resident Maria Figeroa helps make pozole in a teacher’s lounge at Buena Vista Horace Mann Community School on June 10. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)

She decided to make her signature dish – pozole – because it reminds her of home.

When we met, Figueroa had been staying at the shelter for nine months and said she saw the place as home and the shelter residents, her neighbors.

A hand touches chiles in a pan on a stovetop.
Shelter resident Maria Figeroa helps make pozole in the kitchen of a teacher’s lounge at Buena Vista Horace Mann Community School on June 10. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)

“Regardless of how you see the situation, we’re all here for the same thing. We all need a home, we need a place to sleep, a place to eat while we figure out our situation and here, we all see each other and what we’re going through,” she said.

Analy Padilla

Analy Padilla is from Honduras and has been living in this country for 21 years. She also came to this shelter nine months ago after her husband lost his job, and they couldn’t afford the rising cost of rent in San Francisco.

She said she, her husband and their two sons spent several nights sleeping in their car. They called everywhere for an open shelter space.

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“And when they told me there was a spot for my family to stay here, I cried,” Padilla said. “I was so happy. I was finally going to have a home to be with my family.”

A woman wearing a pink t-shirt cuts food on a cutting board in a kitchen.
Shelter resident Analy Padilla helps prepare pozole in a teacher’s lounge at Buena Vista Horace Mann Community School on June 10. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)

Padilla said it’s not easy sharing the bathroom, eating and sleeping spaces with strangers or packing up her stuff each morning. The experience hit her 15-year-old son Kevin hard, she said. At school, his grades dropped, he skipped classes, and he became withdrawn.





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2 injured in San Francisco crash, driver arrested for aggravated assault

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2 injured in San Francisco crash, driver arrested for aggravated assault


Police say two people were injured in a San Francisco crash in the Sunnyvale neighborhood on Thursday. Police say victims were trying to break up a fight when a vehicle struck them. The driver then took off, but was later found and arrested.



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San Francisco Giants Have Big Decision To Make Regarding Their Future Outfield

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San Francisco Giants Have Big Decision To Make Regarding Their Future Outfield


The San Francisco Giants made plenty of moves to improve the roster as a whole in the offseason by bringing in a Cy Young Award winner, a slugging DH, and All-Star third baseman.

While the Giants signed international phenom Jung Hoo Lee to a long-term deal, they seemed committed to transitioning from their veterans to the youngsters in the minors.

One of those young prospects, Heliot Ramos, has turned into one of their best hitters.

An All-Star in his first full season, the 24-year-old leads with team with a 129 OPS+. Aside from him, none of the San Francisco outfielders have made the leap to grab that third spot. It’s important to find the player who will fill that role for 2025, whether it is from within the organization or not.

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Michael Conforto, who has been with the team after signing in free agency before the 2023 season, will be a free agent once again. Mike Yastrzemski will be heading into his last year of arbitration, but is 33 years old and started showing signs of declining this season.

As for the youngsters who were given a shot to grab a role, that is what September has been for.

Luis Matos was up early in the year, and after winning an NL Player of the Week in May, has bounced between Triple-A and the Majors. On the season he is slashing just .211/.235/.340 with five home runs and 25 RBI.

He was called back up in September for an end-of-season showcase, but has only played in three games this month. It would appear the Giants have more or so moved on from Matos being a legitimate option as a starter.

However, another top prospect has made a late surge of his own and put his name in the argument: Grant McCray.

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He was called up in the middle of August and has played 21 games in his rookie campaign. He has impressed the team with his power surge, slugging .507 with three doubles, a triple and five home runs.

There are concerns about his strikeout rate, which currently sits at 42.1% in the Majors, along with the fact that he only has three walks.

The 23-year-old plays great center field defense, which could give them options if they want to move Lee out of that position.

McCray has a head start on the third outfield spot within the organization, though other prospects like Wade Meckler and James Tibbs will be able to showcase themselves in Spring Training.

Of course, the elephant in the room is free agency.

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Plenty of rumors will swirl about Teoscar Hernandez, Lourides Gurriel Jr. and Cody Bellinger if they opt-out, as well as the gem of the class Juan Soto.

Predicted by many to be one of the biggest spenders this offseason, San Francisco has been on the hunt for star names over the last few years.

Bringing in one of these outfielders will kill two birds with one stone.

After a disappointing season, it will be expected that the Giants make a big splash, and aside from possible upgrades to the middle infield, the outfield is the team’s biggest need.



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