Hayden Birdsong News: Joining rotation

Manager Bob Melvin announced Saturday that Birdsong will replace Jordan Hicks in the Giants' rotation, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.

Birdsong lost the race for a rotation spot during spring training, but his 2.31 ERA and 1.29 WHIP across 23.1 innings out of the bullpen, combined with Hicks' struggles as a starter, will cause the two pitchers to swap roles. Birdsong's first start of the season will come Tuesday against the Royals, who own the fourth-lowest scoring offense (157 runs) and sixth-worst OPS (.662) in the majors.