San Francisco Giants: Three sleeper free-agent starting pitcher targets

The San Francisco Giants head into the offseason looking to bolster their starting rotation. Could they roll the dice on a dark horse free-agent target?

With Madison Bumgarner possibly leaving in free agency and unreliable young arms like Tyler Beede and Logan Webb, San Francisco Giants team president Farhan Zaidi may look to bring in cheaper arms.

We have already looked at five under-the-radar starting pitching targets that the team could explore this winter, but there are a plethora of other low-cost options that the team could pursue.

With Gerrit Cole getting knocked around in Game 1 of the World Series, who needs a star ace anyway?

In all seriousness, it has historically been tough for the San Francisco Giants to attract big-name free-agent pitchers. As such, acquiring lower profile ones as they did with Drew Pomeranz last offseason may be their best bet at improving the team.

Historically speaking, signing lower profile starters has resulted in some of their best acquisitions during this past championship decade. Ryan Vogelsong was an under-the-radar pick up that ended up emerging as one of the most beloved Giants during the championship run thanks to his clutch 2012 postseason.

No one predicted that Vogelsong was even going to be on the big league roster in 2011 after he signed a minor league deal during the offseason, let alone a future San Francisco Giants legend. It just goes to show that a diamond in the rough can sometimes be just as valuable as a big-name ace.

So who could be the next possible Vogelsong for the Giants?

Without further ado, let’s take a look at three more starters that might not jump off the page but could help the team out a great deal in 2020 and beyond.

RHP Shelby Miller

An All-Star in 2015 with the Atlanta Braves, Shelby Miller was once a promising young starter that the Braves and Diamondbacks both paid a steep price to acquire via trade.

However, over the past few years, he has hit some bumps in the road.

During his peak season in 2015, he posted a 2.07 ERA during the first half of the season, and he finished the year with a 3.02 ERA in 205.1 innings, albeit with an ugly 6-17 record.

Maybe when Miller retires, he and Matt Cain can go grab a few drinks and share old war stories about getting absolutely no run support.

After that strong 2015 season, he was traded to the Diamondbacks in exchange for top prospect Dansby Swanson and established outfielder Ender Inciarte in a move that looks pretty misguided in retrospect.

Miller was injured for part of his time in his first year with the Diamondbacks, but when he was healthy enough to pitch, he struggled to the point that he was sent him down to Triple A. He finished the season with a 3-12 record and a 6.15 ERA in 20 starts.

He made just four starts in 2017 before undergoing Tommy John surgery and his recovery limited him to just five appearances the following season, in what was essentially two lost years.

The D-backs non-tendered him last offseason and the Texas Rangers took a chance on him returning to form. However, he struggled to an 8.49 ERA in 44 innings before he was released.

So, after all those ugly numbers, you’re probably wondering why the Giants should take a chance on this guy. Well, he is only 29 years, so his career is far from over, and there is still plenty of time for him to turn things around.

He’ll also come cheap, so there is very little risk and a fair amount of reward if he is able to regain anything close to his previous form.

RHP Hector Noesi

As a member of the Miami Marlins in 2019, Hector Noesi struggled.

He only appeared in 10 games, starting five of them, and he had a record of 0-3 with a 6.89 ERA Not exactly inspiring numbers, but he has enjoyed some success in the past.

As a member of the Chicago White Sox in 2014, he went 8-11 with a 4.39 ERA and 1.33 WHIP in 166 innings spanning 27 starts and one relief appearance. That’s not too bad, especially considering that is a hitter-friendly home park.

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However, there was a bit of a gap in his resume, as he didn’t pitch in the MLB from 2015 until last season.

That wasn’t due to injury or lack of interest from teams, as he actually spent the 2016, 2017 and 2018 seasons pitching for the Kia Tigers in the KBO. He even pitched in the league’s World Series in 2017, a season where he wen 20-5 with a 3.48 ERA in the notoriously hitter-friendly league.

So despite his struggles in 2019, he’s recently shown he is still a competent pitcher, and he will definitely come cheap.

Perhaps he’d be better suited for an article on pitchers that are not even on the team’s radar at all, but if they want to sign him to a minor league contract to add some depth, it wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world.

Trimming his walk rate will be the key to bouncing back after he tallied 4.6 BB/9 in 2019. With several young pitchers on the roster who are apt to give free passes, the last thing the team needs is another pitcher to juice the sacks to set up big innings.

So there are three more under-the-radar starting pitchers the San Francisco Giants could pursue this offseason. They will all come cheap and could provide depth to a rotation that figures to have a different look one way or another in 2020.