Young SF Giants hurler pitched his way to a larger role in 2026

Young SF Giants hurler Trevor McDonald only made two starts down the stretch in 2025. However, he impressed during that brief audition, and could pitch his way to a larger role next season.

Young SF Giants hurler pitched his way to a larger role in 2026

The Giants cycled through several young pitchers, as they looked to fortify the back of the rotation. This included Carson Seymour, Kai-Wei Teng, and Carson Whisenhunt.

No one from that group ran with the opportunity, but those starts did prevent McDonald from getting a longer look in the final weeks of the year. Perhaps, that is a decision the Giants regret.

While McDonald only made three total appearances, he did have a couple of noteworthy starts. The first was against the Los Angeles Dodgers, where he allowed just one earned run in six innings of work in a 3-1 win. Anytime a young Giants pitcher is able to pitch effectively against a strong Dodgers lineup, it will open some eyes.

The next start was the final weekend of the season. The right-handed hurler allowed three earned runs on 10 strikeouts and zero walks across seven frames in a 6-3 win over the Colorado Rockies. McDonald's 18 swinging strikes tied Seattle Mariners starter George Kirby for that lead among all pitchers that day.

15 of those swinging strikes came on his curveball. His curveball may have confused Baseball Savant because many of those pitches appeared to have slider movement.

McDonald finished the year with a 3.60 ERA with 14 strikeouts and only two walks in 15 innings for the Giants. It was a brief stint, but a memorable one. He was not nearly as sharp in the Pacific Coast League, where it felt like every ball that was hit into the air left the ballpark. Those extreme home-run tendencies likely would not continue at Oracle Park.

The Giants still need to add a lot of pitching this offseason. Logan Webb, Robbie Ray, and Landen Roupp are penciled in to fill three of the rotation spots. That leaves two openings. They could go in a few different directions to achieve this, but they will likely rely on trades or free agency to fill one of those spots.

McDonald did not throw enough for the Giants to earmark one of those rotation spots for him. However, he will be competing with Hayden Birdsong, Kai Wei-Teng, and Carson Seymour for starts next season. The righty pitcher might even have an inside edge with how he finished the year.