The San Francisco Giants made one of the biggest surprises of free agency when they signed three-time Cy Young winning pitcher Justin Verlander to a one-year deal worth $15 million last week. Though the fit made a lot of sense due to the Giants need in the rotation for another high-upside starter plus the veteran leadership he brings to a young staff,

Like every competent team in baseball, the Giants were in on the hot-shot Japanese free-agent pitcher, who, like Shohei Ohtani before him, is limited to signing a minor-league deal with a Major League team. That massively discounted rate allowed every team to sign him.

Justin Verlander speaks to the media after being introduced as a San Francisco Giant for the 2025 season.Verlander excited to begin ‘new chapter' with Giants in San Francisco originally appeared on

The San Francisco Giants will enter Spring Training with a better team than last year. On paper, that's a step in the right direction, but there's still more th