Hayden Birdsong (born August 30, 2001) is an American professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

for the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB). He played

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played by Student athlete, student-athletes at institutions of higher education. In the United States, college baseball is sanctioned mainly by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA); in Japan, ...

for the

Eastern Illinois Panthers The Eastern Illinois Panthers are the intercollegiate athletic programs of Eastern Illinois University (EIU) located in Charleston, Illinois, United States. The Panthers athletic program competes at the NCAA Division I level and is a member of th ...

and made his MLB debut in 2024.

Amateur career

Birdsong attended

Mattoon High School Mattoon High School is located in Coles County, Mattoon, Illinois, United States. History The original Mattoon High School, famous for its fish-shaped fountain, was relocated in 1956; the fish fountain, which symbolizes the past and future of th ...

Mattoon, Illinois Mattoon ( ) is a city in Coles County, Illinois, United States. The population was 16,870 as of the 2020 census. The city is home to Lake Land College and has close ties with its neighbor, Charleston, Illinois, Charleston. Both are principal cit ...

, where he played baseball. As a junior in 2019, he helped Mattoon win the

Apollo Conference The Apollo Conference is a high school athletic conference represented by 6 schools in the central portion of Illinois. It is a member of the Illinois High School Association. The conference offers championships for girls in basketball, cross cou ...

Championship and was named to the All-Apollo Conference First Team. He then played one season at

Lake Land College Lake Land College is a public community college in Mattoon, Illinois. It was founded in 1966. As of the Fall 2023 semester Lake Land serves 3,699 students, mainly from the east-central Illinois region. The campus has seven major buildings plus ...

in 2020, where in 15 innings over four games (three starts), he had a 7.20 ERA but struck out 20 batters before the season ended early due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. Birdsong transferred to

Eastern Illinois University Eastern Illinois University (EIU) is a public university in Charleston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1895 as the Eastern Illinois State Normal School, a teacher's college offering a two-year degree, Eastern Illinois University gradual ...

to play for the Panthers. In 2021, he posted a 9.76 ERA in 27 innings. That summer, he played for the Danville Dans in the

Prospect League The Prospect League is a collegiate summer baseball league comprising teams of college players from North America and beyond. All players in the league must have NCAA eligibility remaining in order to participate. So as to maintain their colleg ...

, recording a 4.93 ERA in 18 appearances. Birdsong showed significant improvement in 2022. Pitching primarily out of the bullpen, he led the team with a 3.35 ERA over 45 innings, earning a 5–4 record with 66 strikeouts, and was named First Team All-

Ohio Valley Conference The Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) is a collegiate athletic conference which operates in the Midwestern and Southeastern United States. It participates in Division I of the NCAA; the conference's football programs compete in partnership with ...

(OVC). He also led the OVC with a 1.40 ERA in conference games. Following his collegiate season and prior to the MLB draft, he pitched for the Lakeshore Chinooks in the

Northwoods League The Northwoods League is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league. All players in the league must have National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA eligibility remaining in order to participate. The league is amateur, and players are not ...

, where he had a 2–0 record, one save, a 4.15 ERA, and 31 strikeouts in 17 innings over six appearances.

Professional career

The

drafted Birdsong in the sixth round, with the 196th overall selection, of the

2022 Major League Baseball draft The 2022 Major League Baseball draft took place on July 17–19, 2022, in Los Angeles. The draft assigned amateur baseball players to Major League Baseball (MLB) teams. The draft order was based on the reverse order of the 2021 MLB season standin ...

, signing for an under-slot bonus of $187,500. He spent his first professional season with the rookie-level

Arizona Complex League Giants The Arizona Complex League Giants are a professional baseball team competing as a Rookie-level affiliate of the San Francisco Giants in the Arizona Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team plays its home games at Scottsdale Stadium in Sc ...

and Single-A

San Jose Giants The San Jose Giants are a Minor League Baseball team of the California League and the Single-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants. Located in San Jose, California, the Giants play their home games at Excite Ballpark. Games San Jose Giants g ...

, striking out 23 batters in 11 innings. In 2023, Birdsong pitched across three levels (Low-A San Jose, High-A

Eugene Emeralds The Eugene Emeralds (nicknamed the Ems) are a Minor League Baseball team in the northwest United States, based in Eugene, Oregon. The Emeralds are members of the Northwest League and the High-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants. Eugene plays ...

, and Double-A

Richmond Flying Squirrels The Richmond Flying Squirrels are a Minor League Baseball team based in Richmond, Virginia. The team, which is a part of the Eastern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants major league club, and plays at The Diamond. Th ...

), combining for a 2–5 record, a 3.31 ERA, and 149 strikeouts in 100 innings. His 3.31 ERA was the best among Giants minor leaguers with at least 100 innings pitched. On July 4, while pitching for Eugene, he threw five no-hit innings with a career-high 11 strikeouts as part of a combined

no-hitter In baseball, a no-hitter or no-hit game is a game in which a team does not record a hit (baseball), hit through conventional methods. Major League Baseball (MLB) officially defines a no-hitter as a completed game in which a team that batted in ...

against the

Tri-City Dust Devils The Tri-City Dust Devils are a Minor League Baseball team based in Pasco, Washington. The Dust Devils are members of the Northwest League The Northwest League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Northwestern United States ...

. Birdsong began the 2024 campaign with Double-A Richmond and was promoted to the Triple-A

Sacramento River Cats The Sacramento River Cats are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and are the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants. Prior to 2015, the River Cats were the Triple-A affiliate of the Oakland ...

after logging a 2.05 ERA with 61 strikeouts across 11 starts. On June 26, Birdsong was selected to the

40-man roster A Major League Baseball roster is a list of players who are allowed, by league agreement, to play for a Major League Baseball (MLB) team. Each MLB team maintains two rosters: an active roster of players eligible to participate in an MLB game, an ...

and promoted to the major leagues for the first time. He made his major league debut that same day at

Oracle Park Oracle Park is a ballpark in the South of Market, San Francisco, SoMa district of San Francisco, California. Since 2000, it has been the home of the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball (MLB). The stadium stands along San Francisco Bay ...

against the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...

, starting the game and allowing three runs in 4 innings. He made 16 starts for the Giants in his rookie season, finishing with a 5–6 record and a 4.75 ERA with 88 strikeouts in 72 innings pitched in 2024. Birdsong began the 2025 season in the Giants' bullpen, posting a 2.31 ERA in his first 11 relief appearances. On May 20, he made his first start of the season: against the

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The team ...

, Birdsong pitched five scoreless innings, allowing five hits and no walks while striking out four, earning the win in a 3–2 Giants victory.

Pitching style

Birdsong is a 6-foot-4, 215-pound right-handed pitcher who throws four different pitches. His primary pitch is a four-seam fastball that sits in the mid-90s, typically 93-97 mph, and has been clocked as high as 99 mph, featuring riding and running action. His main off-speed pitch is a curveball in the upper-70s to low-80s with significant depth, considered his best bat-missing pitch. He also throws a slider in the mid-80s and a changeup. While initially developed as a starter by the Giants, he has also pitched as a reliever.

Personal life

Birdsong's parents, Stacey and Paula, and sister, Hayley, attended his 2024 MLB debut in person.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Birdsong, Hayden 2001 births Living people Arizona Complex League Giants players Baseball players from Illinois Danville Dans players Eastern Illinois Panthers baseball players Eugene Emeralds players Lakeshore Chinooks players Major League Baseball pitchers People from Mattoon, Illinois Richmond Flying Squirrels players Sacramento River Cats players San Francisco Giants players San Jose Giants players 21st-century American sportsmen