What might second half bring for Birdsong?

SAN FRANCISCO -- The Giants have a full complement of starters heading into the All-Star break, but they’ll need to clear a couple of spots for Robbie Ray and Alex Cobb once the veterans are ready to return from the injured list.

There’s no guarantee Hayden Birdsong will get a chance to stick in the rotation once the Giants get back to full strength, but the 22-year-old rookie continued to make his case on Saturday afternoon, giving up two runs (one earned) on two hits over five innings in a 4-2 loss to the Twins at Oracle Park.

“It was all right,” Birdsong said. “Not exactly what I want, but it hasn’t been every time I’ve gone out. That’s how baseball goes. I’m learning. Every time I go out, I’m just trying to give us a chance to win. That’s what I’ve done so far. Hopefully I can just keep doing that.”

Birdsong struck out three in his fourth career Major League start, though he also dealt with some spotty command, issuing three walks and hitting two batters, including All-Star Willi Castro to lead off the game. Another hit batsman, Ryan Jeffers, came around to score on Matt Wallner’s RBI double to put the Twins on the board in the fourth.

Mike Yastrzemski couldn’t field Wallner’s drive to right field cleanly and then compounded the mistake by overthrowing cutoff man Thairo Estrada, enabling Jeffers to score from second and Wallner to advance to third on the error. A two-out passed ball by catcher Patrick Bailey subsequently brought home Wallner, extending the Twins’ lead to 2-0.

“There are a lot of little things that end up affecting the score at the end,” manager Bob Melvin said. “It’s one that [Bailey’s] trying to get down there and get a strike and just ended up getting past him. It doesn’t lose the game for you. You still have opportunities offensively, you can do different things. It ended up costing us a run, but he’s a pretty good defender.”

Birdsong, who is ranked the club’s No. 4 prospect by MLB Pipeline and No. 98 overall, pitched into the sixth inning only once in his 13 Minor League starts this year, but he looked like he might have a chance to reach that threshold on Saturday after needing only 80 pitches to get through five. Still, the Giants opted to lift him in favor of lefty Taylor Rogers after they rallied to tie the game on RBI singles by Yastrzemski and Heliot Ramos.

Rogers, a twin and former Twins pitcher, entered the game with a 1.93 ERA over 39 appearances this year, but he couldn’t preserve the 2-2 tie in the sixth, surrendering a go-ahead homer to Carlos Santana that grazed off the left-field foul pole and was confirmed following a crew chief review.

“He gave up a run,” Melvin said. “Sometimes it happens. It was set up pretty good for him, two out of three lefties and a switch-hitter in the middle. Obviously, Santana got him.”

Birdsong didn’t factor into the decision and will head into the All-Star break with a 3.72 ERA, 18 strikeouts and 10 walks over 19 1/3 innings. His role in the second half remains to be seen, as the Giants could opt to send him back to Triple-A Sacramento for more seasoning once Ray and Cobb rejoin the rotation. Like fellow starter Jordan Hicks, Birdsong could also be an option to pitch out of the bullpen down the stretch, especially since he mixes an upper-90s fastball with an assortment of offspeed pitches.

“It just depends on when we get guys back,” Melvin said. “He seems more and more comfortable every time he goes out there. He’s pitched well. There was a need for us. I’ve said often, he’s only had a couple of starts in Triple-A and he’s come up here and performed pretty well for us. We have big expectations for him down the road. We’ll see how it works out when we start to get some guys back.”

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Birdsong is hoping he’s earned a longer look in the rotation, but he said he’s ready to do whatever the Giants ask of him in the second half.

“There’s no saying what’s going to happen,” Birdsong said. “They don’t tell us stuff like that. Hopefully, I’ve shown enough to stay up here, but if not, I’m going to still cheer us on. And hopefully, I can get back up here if they send me down. If they don’t, whatever. It doesn’t matter. I’m ready to do whatever.”