Giants right-hander Jordan Hicks has pitched in 29 major league stadiums and two foreign ballparks, but not at Daikin Park — the former Minute Maid Park — in his hometown of Houston. That will change Monday. 

Benjamin Fanjoy/Associated Press

CINCINNATI — Jordan Hicks has pitched in 29 major league stadiums — as well as in regular-season big league games in London and Mexico — but he never has thrown a pitch in his hometown.

Hicks, the San Francisco Giants’ No. 4 starter, will take the mound against the Astros, but he’s such a Houstonian purist that he’s borderline irate the building is longer called Minute Maid Park.

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“They changed the name of the stadium, so it’s not as special for me anymore,” Hicks said. “I guess that’s the real Houston in me.”

Hicks’ family and close friends regularly see him pitch, too, so Monday’s start is more about his extended circle; he estimated he’ll have between 50-100 people on hand for the game.

What Hicks is most eager about is finally getting his season under way. Last year, he was terrific in the early going, with a 4-1 record and a 2.33 ERA in his first two months, but his results became more inconsistent as the season wore on. He went back to the bullpen at the end of July before shoulder discomfort finally cut things short; he pitched only once in the final five weeks of the season. 

This winter, Hicks added 15 pounds, coming in about 10 pounds heavier than he was to start last season. He worked hard to rehab his shoulder and strengthen his lower body. The result was apparent from his first spring game, when his fastball registered 100 mph. 

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What wasn’t so ideal was that he was tipping his pitches his next two spring outings and gave up 11 hits and seven runs in 5⅓ innings.

“Dang, those swings, I haven’t seen people hacking like that in a long time,” Hicks said. “I thought, ‘I must be showing something,’ and it was very obvious on the offspeed and fastball. It’s good that turned up in the spring; I’m pretty excited moving into the season, really confident in my stuff.”

Hicks, once sorted out, allowed six hits and three runs over his final 10⅔ innings of the spring, with one walk and six strikeouts.

“He looks more like himself and like he seems a little more comfortable, he’s smiling a little more,” pitching coach J.P. Martinez said. “He’s not white knuckling it. He’s got more peace of mind about the whole thing, and he’s been really diligent in the weight room and the training room, which has been huge.”

Hicks tinkered with a windup this winter but decided it wasn’t for him after so long in the bullpen. And Martinez wants him to let more of his relief flag fly beyond that.

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“Without getting too far in the weeds, he was trying to be a starter, right? He was trying to have a nice, slow, deliberate delivery,” Martinez said. “But Jordan actually works best like a sprinter getting out of the blocks. I joke with him, ‘You were like a unicorn trying to be a horse,’ he was trying to move so slow, and I think he’s better when he’s fast.”

This isn’t about working more quickly, necessarily. It’s more about Hicks’ own movement. “With the pitch clock, it’s hard not to have pace these days,” he said. “It’s more just the pace of my body, not how quickly I’m getting back on the mound.”

Hicks has ditched nicotine, too, and that has helped his appetite, which he believes will allow him to maintain his weight better throughout the season. “It was hard, I’m not going to lie,” he said. “My bullpens were frustrating, I’d had a dip in all my bullpens for 12 years. I was like, ‘Why am I so frustrated? It’s just a bullpen.’ But I’m at an age where if you don’t stop, you’re going to do it for life.”

Health is the most important factor, of course. When Hicks’ shoulder first began to bark last year, he compensated for it and wound up throwing things off even more.

“You try to make up for it in another place, and then you mix in the lower body fatigue, and I’d try to reach back and usually I’d get 100-102 — last year, I’m reaching back and getting 98,” Hicks said of his velocity. “I knew I had more in there.

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“Now my shoulder feels good, my body feels good. I have a stronger base with all the weight conditioning. Everything is coming together.”

Reach Susan Slusser: [email protected]; X: @susanslusser