San Francisco Giants: 15 greatest MLB trade deadline deals of all time

6. Jake Peavy solidifies the rotation for a World Series run

Date: July 26, 2014
To Giants: RHP Jake Peavy
To Red Sox: LHP Edwin Escobar, RHP Heath Hembree

With Matt Cain injured and a struggling Tim Lincecum headed for the bullpen, the Giants needed starting pitching help in a big way at the 2014 deadline.

Jake Peavy proved to be the perfect addition.

The 33-year-old went 6-4 with a 2.17 ERA and 1.04 WHIP in 78.2 innings over 12 starts, and he started four more games in the postseason, as the Giants captured their third World Series title in five years.

The Giants brought him back on a two-year, $24 million deal during the offseason and he went 13-15 with a 4.59 ERA while averaging 115 innings over the life of the contract, but that middling performance takes nothing away from the significant impact he made in 2014.

Left-hander Edwin Escobar was the No. 2 Giants prospect and No. 56 MLB prospect heading into 2014, according to Baseball America, but he never developed into anything more than organizational depth in Boston. Reliever Heath Hembree, however, has carved out a solid career as a middle reliever for the Red Sox.