Giants Have Clearly Made Correct Decision Flip Flopping Starter and Reliever

The San Francisco Giants shook things up recently within the pitching staff in a decision that could not have been an easy one.

After a difficult start to the season for converted reliever Jordan Hicks and a dominant start for long reliever Hayden Birdsong, the Giants sent Hicks back to the bullpen and brought the young Birdsong into the starting rotation.

Though it has been a small sample size so far, the early results are proving that the right call was made.

Hayden Birdsong and Jordan Hicks Excelling in New Roles For Giants

Birdsong has only made two starts so far, but those outings have shown he has taken another step from last season.

After excelling in his role out of the bullpen coming off what was a dominant spring training, the 23-year-old looks like a whole new pitcher than what he did in 2024.

On Monday, Birdsong had some bad luck. As a result, he was unable to pick up a win against the Detroit Tigers. But he still struck out six on a day where it was clear his best stuff was not there. In his first start against the Kansas City Royals, Birdsong allowed just one run in five innings.

That is a positive sign of what could be coming.

As for Hicks, he is beginning to look more comfortable back in the bullpen, allowing one total run over his first three relief appearances.

San Francisco gave Hicks a lucrative contract two years ago to come be a starter, making it even more difficult to admit the experiment has failed. But after posting a 6.55 ERA on the season through the middle of May, it was clearly time to make the move.

What kind of impact he can have on the group of relievers as a whole remains to be seen, but this was clearly the right decision as the Giants try to put their best five out there in the rotation.

There's no question they view Birdsong as a potential future ace, therefore it was time to take the training wheels off and give him real opportunity as a starter.

Birdsong's acceleration as a pitcher happened to line up with Hicks' regression, but flip flopping the pair puts each in their natural role and should give them both the best chance of success.

And if each can have personal success, it should lead to more victories, as well.

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