San Francisco Giants: Potential replacements if Madison Bumgarner walks

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BOSTON, MA – AUGUST 10: Rick Porcello #22 of the Boston Red Sox pitches in the first inning of a game against the Los Angeles Angels at Fenway Park on August 10, 2019 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images) /

Mid-level free agents

The San Francisco Giants don’t necessarily need to shop at the top of the free-agent market to find a starting rotation upgrade.

Guys like Rick Porcello, Jake Odorizzi, and Alex Wood are all capable starters that figure to come significantly cheaper than the marquee names in this year’s class.

Porcello, 30, has a 4.35 ERA over 11 MLB seasons and he has topped 160 innings in every year of his career. The 2016 AL Cy Young winner has not pitched at a frontline level the past three seasons, but he’s consistent and durable.

Odorizzi, 29, is enjoying the best season of his career. He earned a spot on the All-Star team for the first time and he’s gone 13-5 with a 3.44 ERA and 1.22 WHIP while racking up 126 strikeouts in 120.1 innings.

Wood, 28, has been hurt for much of the 2019 season, making just four starts since joining the Cincinnati Reds in an offseason trade. However, he was an All-Star in 2017 and during his four seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers, he had a 3.47 ERA and 1.17 WHIP in 434.2 innings.

These are not the flashiest options on the market, but under-the-radar moves are something that Farhan Zaidi has never shied away from, and he could focus in on one of these starters as a way to offset the potential loss of Bumgarner.