Birdsong collects first MLB win as Giants take opener

2:19 AM UTC

ATLANTA -- Less than a week after making his Major League debut, Giants rookie got to check off another big career milestone: his first win.

Birdsong gave up two runs over a career-high five innings, and Jorge Soler, LaMonte Wade Jr. and Heliot Ramos each homered as the Giants defeated the Braves, 5-3, in Tuesday night’s series opener at Truist Park.

Birdsong, the Giants’ No. 4 prospect, per MLB Pipeline, came within an out of qualifying for the win in his first start against the Cubs on Wednesday, but he ended up surrendering a game-tying solo home run to Seiya Suzuki that ended his night after 4 2/3 innings.

The 22-year-old right-hander managed to get through five in his first career start on the road, permitting only back-to-back homers to Austin Riley and Sean Murphy in the second.

The Braves threatened in the fifth after Adam Duvall reached on a leadoff walk and Forrest Wall legged out a bunt single, but Birdsong retired Zack Short on a sacrifice bunt, struck out Jarred Kelenic swinging on a nasty changeup and then coaxed a flyout from Ozzie Albies to leave both runners stranded and preserve a 2-2 tie.

The Giants got on the board after Soler and Wade went back-to-back off Braves starter Reynaldo López in the fifth and then went ahead in the sixth, when Michael Conforto led off with a double, advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt by Brett Wisely and scored on a fielding error by Riley.

San Francisco manager Bob Melvin initially sent up Luis Matos to pinch-hit for Mike Yastrzemski against left-hander Dylan Lee, though the Braves countered by bringing in veteran righty Pierce Johnson. Still, the move ended up working out for the Giants, as Matos sent a hard-hit grounder to the left side that bounced off Riley’s glove at third base, allowing Conforto to score the tie-breaking run from third.

San Francisco added a pair of insurance runs via Nick Ahmed’s sacrifice fly in the eighth and Ramos’ solo shot off Jesse Chavez in the ninth.