were one of the most active teams during the offseason in an attempt to overhaul their roster and get themselves back into the playoffs for the first time since 2021.were coming off a World Series trip, being aggressive in the free agency market was something this front office had to do.
Before they landed Matt Chapman and Blake Snell late in the process, one of their most prized signings was flamethrowing reliever Jordan Hicks. He was completely dominant during his rookie season in 2018, posting a 3.59 ERA across his 73 appearances. That carried over into the next year when his ERA+ was 35 points above the league average, but just 29 games into the campaign, he underwent Tommy John surgery to repair his torn UCL.His struggles continued until he finally regained some of his past form last year and became a prized free agent target for multiple teams around the league during the offseason.
With him allowing 12 earned runs in 13 innings pitched this month, San Francisco is reportedly ready to change his role., they will move him back into the bullpen after this weekend where he likely makes his last start of the season. "We talked to today. It's just a matter of what we need on Sunday. We're going to have two starters on Saturday and there's going to be a need for a starter on Sunday. If it is him, we'll probably shorten it a little bit, because he's getting a little worn down, as we've seen," manager Bob Melvin said.Hicks has already surpassed the most innings he's thrown in a year by 21 frames, something that is difficult for any reliever to do.