Logan Webb, Hayden Birdsong debut

They can’t lose!

The San Francisco Giants bagged a 5-2 win over the Cincinnati Reds in their second Cactus League game of 2025.

Notable debut notes:

Logan Webb

The Giants announced Webb as the 2025 Opening Day starter a couple days ago, and he opened his spring by cruising through his first two innings. He struck out Will Benson to close out the 1st. He induced a couple of pop-ups, a couple-plus-one ground outs. No hits, no walks, no runs, no fuss. It’s been awhile since Webb could say that about a spring outing.

Willy Adames

Camp was a-buzz after Adames sent one of the first live pitches he saw over an outfield wall. In his first at-bat this spring, the Giants largest off-season acquisition bagged a base-hit off Reds reliever-turned-probable-starter Nick Martinez. He pulled a walk out of an 0-2 hole against Jose Acuna in the 3rd, setting up the Giants first run of the game on Mike Yastrzemski’s sacrifice fly.

Hayden Birdsong

The supposed front-runner for the fifth rotation spot, the young right-hander kicked things off auspiciously by balking in the tying run in the 4th. It wasn’t a nit-picky balk either. Birdsong checked a base runner by faking a throw over to third…which you can not do.

Birdsong took ownership for the momentary lapse by lightly tapping his chest towards the dugout before striking out the next three batters. A great response to a bonehead move. Part of me thinks he did it on purpose, not wanting to bother with a runner on third this early on in his re-acclimation to the mound. And even if it was accidental, Jon Miller and Duane Kuiper pointed out on the broadcast that this is exactly when you want to make mistakes like that. A well-executed d’oh! But is there ever an ideal time for a kid trying to turn heads, make an impression and break camp on a big league roster to do something like that? Ah, the anxieties of Spring.

Don’t stress there, Birdy. What Bob Melvin will remember is the mature bite on that curveball, already touching 98 MPH with that fastball velocity.

His day: 1 R, 2 XBH, 0 BB, 3K over 2 IP.

Wilmer Flores

The 33 year old veteran is back and hopefully healthy after dealing with a bum knee in 2024. He went 0-for-2 with a couple of fly outs while logging some innings at first. Nothing really to report there, but no news is probably good news. Keep an eye on him these next couple weeks.

Both cheeks Bailey

Giants bats launched three-homers yesterday, and backstop Patrick Bailey added another punch today.

After significant offensive fall-offs these past two years, Bailey’s goal for the 2025 season is to remain viable at the plate from April all the way through October. He bulked up before last season hoping to give him some more physical endurance, but the added weight didn’t prove to be the fix. Mike Krukow in a recent conversation on KNBR chalked up the second-half decline to being a bit out-of-shape. Though that feels like an over-simplification for the glove-first catcher, it seems like Bailey agrees somewhat with that assessment. He commented this past week that one of the changes he made this off-season was more intentionality around his diet with not just what he eats, but the quality of ingredients as well.

His homer from the left side of the plate in the 4th was a no-doubter. So the test will be what he does six months from now, but this a promising first step. Keep eating your veggies, Pat!

Other deep thoughts:

Bryce can doink

The Giants top prospect sent us into a tizzy with yesterday’s homer. Power flexed in game one. In game two, more flair with a flare: Eldridge blooped a single to the opposite field in the 7th that directly led to San Francisco’s fifth run.

Keep hitting, Bryce.

Grant Mc-K

The young center fielder is already in mid-season form when it comes to the strikeout. The prodigious appetite of his swing appears to have not abated since posting a K-rate of nearly 50% last season. He struck out in his first two at-bats this afternoon and was spared a third when Josh Staumont committed a pitch-clock violation in a 3-2 count. In five trips to the plate so far, McCray has a trio of strikeouts and a homer to his name.

It’s early, of course. But time is a luxury he doesn’t really have. He’s got to make an impression. An opportunity to display some plate adaptability presented itself with two runners on and nobody out in the 3rd, but he botched the 0-1 bunt. He nearly tripped over the plate trying to check his swing in his third at-bat. Grand POBO Posey’s emphasis on developing more “complete” hitters, on situational hitting, might spell early trouble for the prospect. The two-outcomes offense he’s becoming known for will have to evolve, and fast.