Blade Tidwell Makes Strong Initial Case to Make Giants Opening Day Roster

Blade Tidwell got two lucky breaks in 2025. He was traded to the San Francisco Giants, and he got a new manager, one he’s quite familiar with.

On Saturday, he got his first chance to pitch for his new manager, Tony Vitello, and his new team, in a spring training game against the Seattle Mariners. It couldn’t have gone much better.

Tidwell got the second inning after starter Hayden Birdsong recorded just one out and gave up five runs and Tyler Vogel entered the game to record the final two outs. He showed off a potent arsenal of pitches, as he struck out Seattle’s Victor Robles, Patrick Wisdom and Connor Joe. He did walk Cole Young, and Young did steal second. But Tidwell stranded him.

It surely made Vitello proud. After all, before Vitello was Giants manager he was Tidwell’s coach at the University of Tennessee.

Blake Tidwell’s Pro Career

Blade Tidwell struck out three and walked one in his first inning of the spring. Topped out at 97.8 and showed off a good slider: pic.twitter.com/sZwLnZFgdm
— Alex Pavlovic (@PavlovicNBCS) February 21, 2026

Tidwell made his Major League debut last year with the New York Mets. He pitched in four games, with two starts, as he went 1-1 with a 9.00 ERA. He struck out 10 and walked 10 in 15 innings. When the Giants traded reliever Tyler Rogers to the Mets, they got three players — Tidwell, pitcher José Buttó and outfielder Drew Gilbert.

Buttó and Gilbert both played for San Francisco last year. Tidwell spent the rest of the year at Triple-A Sacramento. He spent most of that time on the injured list and only threw in four games with the River Cats.

But, he was considered good enough to be named the Giants’ No. 13 prospect when he arrived in the organization.

Birdsong shouldn’t have been in much of a mood to praise any of his teammates after Saturday’s outing. But the former Giants top prospect talked about what he saw out of Tidwell in his one inning of relief.

"He was nasty," Birdsong said to reporters, including NBC Sports Bay Area. "When he rips his sweeper, nobody can hit it."

NBCSBA reported that Tidwell threw nine sweepers, three of which went for swinging strikes. When thrown properly, it can be a potent pitch.

With a rotation that appears to have a full complement of starters going into spring training, along with some added depth, Tidwell’s best path to an opening day roster spot is to show he can be an answer in long relief.

In the minors, he’s coming off a 2025 in which he went 6-4 with a 3.62 ERA in 21 games (17 starts) with the Mets’ Syracuse affiliate and with Sacramento. He pitched 97 innings, striking out 111 and walking 37. Batters hit .218 against him. The numbers say he’s ready for more run in the Major Leagues. If he can prove it, he could be playing for his college coach in San Francisco.