Best San Francisco Giants of the 2010s: 13. Jeremy Affeldt

Lefty reliever Jeremy Affeldt was part of the “Core Four” that anchored the San Francisco Giants during their three World Series titles.

The San Francisco Giants signed Jeremy Affeldt to a two-year, $8 million deal prior to the 2009 season.

Originally drafted by the Kansas City Royals in the third round of the 1997 draft, he began his career in a swingman role before making the transition to full-time reliever.

After posting 4,91 ERA and 1.53 WHIP over his first five MLB seasons, he turned in a breakout campaign with the Colorado Rockies in 2007 and backed it up with another terrific season with the Cincinnati Reds in 2008.

• 2007: 75 G, 3.51 ERA, 1.36 WHIP, 46 K, 59.0 IP
• 2008: 74 G, 3.33 ERA, 1.32 WHIP, 80 K, 78.1 IP

His first season with the San Francisco Giants would be the best of his 14-year career.

In 74 appearances, he posted a 1.73 ERA and 1.17 WHIP with 33 holds, and he even appeared on one NL MVP ballot.

The lefty wound up spending seven seasons in San Francisco, logging a 3.06 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and 7.3 K/9 with 107 holds in 414 appearances.

While those numbers are solid, it’s his postseason performance that solidified his legacy with the Giants.

• 2010: 5 G, 4.50 ERA, 4.0 IP
• 2012: 10 G, 1 HLD, 0.00 ERA, 10.1 IP
• 2014: 11 G, 2-0, 3 HLD, 0.00 ERA, 11.2 IP

Those lights out performances in 2012 and 2014 played a pivotal role in the team’s title runs, and having such a reliable lefty weapon alongside specialist Javier Lopez in the relief corps allowed manager Bruce Bochy to consistently play the matchups.

All told, he earned $35 million during his time with the San Francisco Giants and posted 4.5 WAR.

That might not seem like good value on the surface, but Affeldt was undoubtedly an instrumental part of the team’s three title World Series titles.

He retired at the end of the 2015 season at the age of 36.

Check back here regularly as we count down the 50 best San Francisco Giants of the 2010s.