Hey look, the Giants did something! The reigning World Champions finished off the back of their rotation by re-signing Jake Peavy to a two-year deal worth $24 million.
Peavy with #SFGiants: Two years, $24M, $4M signing bonus, $7M in ’15, $13M in ’16, full no-trade clause. Terms first reported by @jcrasnick
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) December 19, 2014
The 33-year old Peavy had an up and down 2014 with the Red Sox and Giants. He pitched to a 3.73 ERA in 202 2/3 innings, but his strikeout rate dipped below 20% for the first time since 2003 (when he was just a 22-year old Padre). However, he did pitch significantly better after the trade from Boston to San Francisco – in 12 starts, he pitched to a 2.17 ERA in 78 2/3 innings.
San Francisco’s rotation was a heaping pile of question marks past World Series MVP Madison Bumgarner – Tim Hudson is 39 and struggled down the stretch, Matt Cain made just 15 starts, Tim Lincecum was awful, Yusmeiro Petit is Yusmeiro Petit, and Ryan Vogelsong is a free agent who had an erratic season.
The Giants needed to do something with their rotation. The club was one of the four finalists for Jon Lester, but lost out to the Cubs. They had also been linked to former Royal James Shields, who is likely going to be getting a whole lot more than the $24 million that Peavy got.
Bringing back Peavy isn’t the most optimal solution, but it was probably the most cost-effective and Peavy is a much less risky option than someone like say, Kyle Kendrick or Edinson Volquez.
