LOS ANGELES — Trevor McDonald said all the right things Sunday, even though he’s just three appearances into his big league career.
The Giants right-hander mentioned he was thankful for the opportunity and is simply focused on helping the team win as many games as possible down the stretch. But for the 24-year-old, September is about more than just filling innings.
Every opportunity is an audition, and McDonald certainly opened some eyes on Sunday. The game was won, 3-1, after he departed, but he more than did his part, allowing just one run over six-plus innings against a Los Angeles Dodgers club that has had its way with the Giants all season.
It’s too soon to know what that will mean for McDonald in the offseason. But for now this much is clear: He has earned another start next weekend.
“Yeah, for sure,” manager Bob Melvin said. “You pitch six innings against a lineup like that, you deserve another start.”
The Giants have much bigger questions to answer over the final week, but here’s a small one they should probably kick around in meetings next week at Oracle Park: Why did it take so long for McDonald to get a shot?
The right-hander is not a top prospect and didn’t explode off the page in Triple-A, but that’s a tough league for pitchers, and he generally handled himself well. Plus, there’s the simple, overriding fact that the Giants ran out of pitching weeks ago and McDonald has been on the 40-man roster all season.
That lack of depth helped drop them below .500, but McDonald led the Giants on Sunday as they at least avoided a sweep. He struck out three and scattered six hits while getting a couple of huge double plays behind him.
“Man, that was great,” Melvin said. “To be able to go against that lineup, his first start for us, I’ll tell you what — he’s not afraid. There’s some determination in him.”
” … He’s not afraid.”
Bob Melvin likes what he saw from Trevor McDonald in his first MLB start 👏 pic.twitter.com/IptdXoCyS1
— SF Giants on NBCS (@NBCSGiants) September 21, 2025
That was no surprise to the organization’s top prospect, who also arrived on this road trip. Bryce Eldridge made his first start at first base and helped out with a diving stop that started a double play. Afterward he said McDonald was his favorite pitcher to play behind in Triple-A because he works quickly and throws strikes.
McDonald relies heavily on his sinker, but it was the breaking ball that stood out Sunday. He got some ugly swings from Shohei Ohtani early on and said that helped him settle in.
“That took the pressure off right away,” McDonald said.
When it got turned back up, the gloves were there.
Willy Adames and Christian Koss teamed up for an athletic double play, and Eldridge ended the seventh with the dive and then a throw across the diamond to Matt Chapman. It skipped, but that can be excused from the former two-way star. A lot was thrown at Eldridge the last week and throws to third were not high on the list.
“Thankfully we’ve got a Gold Glover over there,” Eldridge said. “I told him I’d get him back a few times.”
Eldridge should get a few opportunities over the final six games. The plan is for him to split first base and DH with Rafael Devers on the homestand, which could mean another day behind McDonald.
The Giants have had two empty slots in their rotation for most of September, but Kai-Wei Teng has impressed the staff with his strikeout stuff. Carson Whisenhunt could be back for one more appearance, but there still will be an opportunity for McDonald. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see some veterans shut down when the Giants are officially eliminated, which could come as soon as Tuesday.
McDonald said he’s just trying to contribute, but he knows there’s a lot at stake for him right now, even if that’s not the case for the team overall.
“I’m trying to finish strong,” he said, “and carry that into the offseason and come back next spring and try to make the team.”
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