ANAHEIM, CA – AUGUST 10: Stephen Piscotty #25 of the Oakland Athletics scores as Julio Teheran #49 of the Los Angeles Angels covers the plate after a wild pitch in the second inning at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on August 10, 2020 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by John McCoy/Getty Images)
The SF Giants continue to look for ways to upgrade the starting rotation, and they have recently checked in on two right-handed hurlers.
According to Jon Heyman MLB Network, 24 teams watched workouts for Julio Teheran and Anibal Sanchez on Tuesday. Mark Sanchez of KNBR confirms that the SF Giants were one of the 24 teams.
The Giants’ interest in further bolstering the rotation is not surprising. So far this offseason, Kevin Gausman accepted a one-year, $18.9 million qualifying offer, whereas Anthony DeSclafani ($6 million base) and Alex Wood ($3 million base) were reeled in on a pair of one-year deals.
Johnny Cueto and Logan Webb will likely round out the final two spots in the rotation. With that being said, the Giants need a lot more depth and adding either Teheran or Sanchez would qualify as depth moves.
Teheran, in particular, would be an intriguing reclamation project as he has strung together a solid career while still being relatively young at 29 years of age. In parts of ten seasons, the righty has registered a 77-77 overall record, 3.81 ERA, 4.33 FIP, 1.22 WHIP, and a solid 2.54 SO/W ratio.
After nine seasons with the Atlanta Braves, Teheran reached free agency for the first time in his career last winter. He signed a one-year, $9 million pact with the Los Angeles Angels in what became a forgettable season for the veteran hurler.
In ten appearances, he posted a 10.05 ERA (8.62 FIP) across 31.1 frames. However, this could have been a product of some small sample shenanigans as he has proven to be a reliable arm over the years. In today’s workout, Teheran appeared to be toying with a new arm slot.
On the other hand, Anibal Sanchez has authored a long and distinguished career that includes one ERA title (2013) and two trips to the World Series in 2012 and 2019 with the Detroit Tigers and Washington Nationals, respectively. Of course, the SF Giants were on the winning end of that series in 2012.
Nevertheless, he has been a steady producer since he debuted with the Florida Marlins way back in 2006. In 15 seasons, the 36-year-old has posted a 112-113 overall record, 4.05 ERA, 3.94 FIP, 1.31 WHIP, and a 2.64 SO/W ratio.
Sanchez just finished a two-year, $13 million contract that he inked with the Nationals in 2018. In that time, he produced a 4.52 ERA across 41 starts. However, similar to Teheran, the 2020 campaign was a rough one for Sanchez. He appeared in 11 games where he generated a 6.62 ERA across 53 frames.
Both Teheran and Sanchez are likely in the market for a low guaranteed salary, or even a minor league deal in the case of Sanchez given his age and mileage. If anything, the Giants’ interest suggests that they believe there is still work to be done on the rotation.
Signing Teheran or Sanchez may not be the most exciting move of the offseason, but they would give the rotation much-needed depth and these are the types of moves that quietly pay dividends when the pitching staff runs thin as the season wears on.
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