The Giants have stayed away from the top of the starting pitching market in recent years, but they apparently had pretty strong interest in one of the best right-handers available before the lockout started in December.
While responding to a tweet from a Giants fan on Thursday, Marcus Stroman indicated that he went somewhat far down the road with team officials early in the offseason. Stroman ultimately signed a three-year, $71 million deal with the Chicago Cubs, but he has nothing but praise for the Giants front office:
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Stroman's contract came out about twice as big as the Anthony DeSclafani deal, the largest given out by the current front office, but it's easy to see why the Giants had interest. As a groundball pitcher, Stroman would have fit in perfectly with the rest of the staff, and he's constantly tinkering with his mix, something the Giants surely admired. They're doing the same thing with pitchers up and down the organization.
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Stroman had a 3.02 ERA last season with the Mets and entered free agency as one of the most durable and consistent players available. He could have formed a strong partnership with Logan Webb in San Francisco, but instead he'll try and lead the Cubs back to contention.
Before the Stroman deal was announced, the Giants filled their rotation out around Webb. They brought DeSclafani and Alex Wood back and signed Alex Cobb to a two-year deal.
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