San Francisco Giants Pitcher Receives Incredible Gift for 27th Birthday

A San Francisco Giants pitcher received the best gift for his 27th birthday this week.

Jun 15, 2024; San Francisco, California, USA; San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Keaton Winn (67) throws a pitch against the Los Angeles Angels during the first inning at Oracle Park. / Robert Edwards-Imagn Images

Feb. 20 was a big day in the San Francisco Giants camp, as multiple players celebrated their birthdays.

A lot of attention was given to one of their big free-agent signings, Justin Verlander, who turned 42 years old. As part of the razzing for rookies and players in camp for the first time, they had to sign “Happy Birthday” to the future Hall of Famer.

After the three-time Cy Young Award winner was serenaded by his teammates and were going to begin their workouts for the day, manager Bob Melvin reminded them that another teammate was celebrating his birthday as well.

Fellow pitcher Keaton Winn turned 27 years old.

While so much attention was given to his veteran teammate, it was Winn who received the best gift of all; being able to face hitters again for the first time in seven months.

It has been a long, arduous path back to the mound for Winn, who last faced hitters seven months ago.

“It’s like, whew, finally,” said Winn, who threw live batting practice on the main field at Scottsdale Stadium, per Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic. “I’m throwing on the mound for a reason again.”

This was a major improvement from how Winn spent his 26th birthday.

A year ago, he was undergoing tests for the discomfort he was feeling in his elbow, which he underwent Tommy John surgery on in 2021.

With no structural damage revealed, Winn attempted to push through the pain and continue pitching. He was able to ramp up his workload and take the mound for the Giants’ fifth game of the season against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

However, the pain eventually returned and became too much for him to handle.

Over his final six outings, he registered an ERA of 13.50 and was shut down following a start on June 20.

It was eventually revealed that he was dealing with an irritated ulnar nerve. He underwent surgery to transpose it, cutting his season short and keeping him from throwing for four months.

“I had a big opportunity and my arm kind of messed everything up, I guess,” Winn said. “The MRIs have trouble showing nerve inflammation and I wasn’t getting ringing in the fingers. So we went down the list and they said, ‘It’s gotta be this.’ Process of elimination. It’s felt great since they went in and did it.”

That long road all led to his 27th birthday, where he was firing fastballs anywhere between 95-97 mph. He was also able to unleash his best pitch, his splitter, which he said felt the best since 2023 when he first put himself on the map.

This year had to feel much better, right?

“No sh ... no doubt,” said Winn, smiling after he censored himself. “Getting an MRI on your birthday is not what you want.”

Winn will have his work cut out for him to earn a spot in the San Francisco starting rotation.

But, he will accept any role the team has for him on the Major League roster.

He is just looking forward to competing again and is excited to be healthy entering the campaign.

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