San Francisco Giants sign free-agent pitcher Jordan Hicks

As the MLB free agent pitching market begins to take shape, the San Francisco Giants are taking a swing at one of the game’s top bullpen arms.

According to ESPN’s Jeff Passan, the Giants have reached an agreement with free-agent pitcher Jordan Hicks on a four-year, $44 million deal that will bring the former Toronto Blue Jay and St. Louis Cardinal to the Bay Area.

Hicks, 27, has been a reliever for the first six seasons of his MLB career, but Passan reports that San Francisco will be converting the right-hander into a starting pitcher.

BREAKING: Right-hander Jordan Hicks and the San Francisco Giants are in agreement on a four-year, $44 million contract, a source familiar with the deal tells ESPN. Hicks, 27, is expected to work as a starter after spending the majority of his career in the bullpen.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) January 12, 2024

More on new Giants pitcher Jordan Hicks

With Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto in Los Angeles with the rival Dodgers and top remaining arms like Jordan Montgomery and Blake Snell fielding offers, the Giants made an aggressive move in an attempt to bolster its rotation.

On the heels of former target Marcus Stroman’s two-year deal with the New York Yankees, San Francisco inked Hicks to a four-year deal to give the flamethrower a chance to start for the first time in his career.

Hicks has been known for his impressive velocity during his time in the bigs, as the Houston native often uses his devastating sinker–a pitch that often touches the 100+ mph range.

According to MLB.com’s Brent Maguire,  there have been 1,740 pitchers who’ve thrown at least 500 fastballs (four-seamers and sinkers) since the pitch-tracking era started in 2008.

Hicks is near the top of that list, with an average 101.1 mph fastball that trails only Minnesota Twins’ pitcher Jhoan Duran’s 101.3 mph heater.

Jordan Hicks’s Ridiculous Stuff. 😳

Back door 103mph Sinker and 2 Bowling Ball 104mph Sinkers. pic.twitter.com/3QfDqz3kDU

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 19, 2023

Over 212 career appearances at the MLB level, Hicks holds a 3.85 ERA and 9.4 K/9 rating to go along with a 1.29 WHIP.

While it’s certainly a gamble to insert Hicks into a starting rotation for the first time in his career, San Francisco clearly has faith that the righty has the stuff needed to make an impact next to ace Logan Webb and fellow starters Alex Cobb, Ross Stripling, and Kyle Harrison.

SF Giants Schedule

Spring Training

• February 13-15th – Pitchers and catchers report for Spring Training workouts
• February TBD – Full squad workouts
• Saturday, February 24th – Spring Training opener vs. Chicago Cubs

Regular Season

• Thursday, March 28th-Sunday, March 31st – @ San Diego Padres
• Monday, April 1st-Wednesday, April 3rd – @ Los Angeles Dodgers
• Friday, April 5th-Sunday, April 7th – vs. San Diego Padres

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