MLB Rumors: 5 teams who must pony up for Blake Snell with market thinning

1. The Giants still need starting pitching help even after their latest signing

The San Francisco Giants signing Jordan Hicks to a four-year deal was surprising not for the value, but for the reason the team is choosing to use him as a starting pitcher. Hicks has been wanting an opportunity to start games, and the Giants are giving him that chance. While Hicks has unlimited potential as a pitcher with elite stuff, he's nowhere near proven as a starting pitcher.

The right-hander has never thrown more than 77.2 innings in a single season in his MLB career, and that came back in his rookie year, 2018. Since then, he's had numerous arm injuries including undergoing Tommy John Surgery back in 2019. Hicks' uncertainty combined with the fact that Robbie Ray and Alex Cobb will both be beginning the season on the IL makes the rotation still a clear need for San Francisco.

Logan Webb is really the only starting pitcher the Giants can count on to give them quality innings. If they have any hope of being competitive in 2024, that's going to have to change. Even with a Snell addition, the Giants would probably be the third-best team in the NL West at best, but a Wild Card should be very much in play.

The Giants have been missing out on virtually every big free agent over the last couple of offseasons. While Snell will be pricey and has question marks surrounding how consistently good he can be, this would finally be a big free agent coming to San Francisco. The Giants could still reportedly get him even after the Hicks signing, and need to make that happen.