SF Giants should take a flyer on veteran Cy Young winner to bolster rotation

The SF Giants rotation is a bit scary right now, and not in a good way. They have their ace in Logan Webb, but after that, there are a lot of question marks. The Giants should take a flyer on the veteran former Cy Young winner Zack Greinke to bolster their rotation.

SF Giants should take a flyer on veteran Cy Young winner to bolster rotation

After Webb, the rotation projects to include Kyle Harrison, Jordan Hicks, Keaton Winn (injury permitting), and Mason Black. There is a lot of promise and upside in that group, but there is also a lot of uncertainty.

Unfortunately, none of those pitchers has been a consistent starter in the big leagues before. To go into a season with only one proven starter in your rotation is either incredibly bold or incredibly foolish.

The Giants could still potentially get a frontline starter like Blake Snell or Jordan Montgomery, or perhaps a mid-tier option like Michael Lorenzen. However, if one reads the tea leaves it seems like the front office does not want to splurge on a top-tier option.

What about a lower-tier and more affordable option, though? After Zack Greinke's rough 2023 in which he has a record of 2-15 and a 5.06 ERA, albeit on a poor team in the Kansas City Royals, he will not command a hefty salary in 2024.

While he played on a one-year $13 million contract last season, the Giants could probably get him for half as much this season if he still wants to pitch.

The numbers were not pretty for Greinke last season, but he could still provide value for the Giants. He only had 23 walks in 142 and 1/3 innings last year, so the Giants would be getting a guy who can eat up innings and reliably put the ball in the strike zone.

They would also be getting a veteran pitcher who, at his peak, was one of the best pitchers of his generation. He would be a phenomenal mentor for everyone on the Giants pitching staff. It would sort of be like when the Giants signed Randy Johnson at the very end of his career. Plus, much like Johnson recording his 300th win in a Giants uniform, Greinke is only 21 strikeouts short of 3,000 for his career.

Even if Greinke doesn't pan out, the Giants really just need him to act as a bridge until Alex Cobb and Robbie Ray are eventually healthy enough to pitch. Then, the Giants can either trade Greinke if he has any sort of value or just release him.

This is a very low-risk move for the Giants that could prove very important at the end of the year. If they can get a little out of Greinke at the beginning of the year and he wins a few games, that could be the difference in a tight Wild Card race.

It is not the likeliest deal as it seems like the Giants are going to roll the dice on their young pitching staff, but signing Greinke would be a veteran addition to a starting rotation that is light on experience.