Giants add Cahill to mix with spring invite

February 12th, 2020

Looking to rebound from a tough 2019, has signed a Minor League deal with the Giants, the club announced on Wednesday.

Cahill will be in Major League Spring Training and compete for a 26-man roster spot among a crowded, yet somewhat uncertain, contingent of starting pitchers.

The soon-to-be 32-year-old is coming off a one-year, $9 million deal he signed with the Angels last season, in which he went 4-9 with a 5.98 ERA over 102 1/3 innings while struggling to keep his spot in the rotation. Cahill was demoted to the bullpen after making 11 starts over the first two months, and while he made marginal improvements, he rarely pitched in high-leverage situations and his opposing OPS as a reliever was .864.

There have been signs of promise as recently as 2018, when Cahill went 7-4 with a 3.76 ERA for an A’s staff that reached the postseason.

Cahill is the latest addition looking to re-establish himself in San Francisco, along with Kevin Gausman, Drew Smyly and Tyson Ross. And there could be an allotment of Major League innings to go around, particularly after the departure of Madison Bumgarner to the D-backs via free agency.

Johnny Cueto is in line to be the club’s No. 1 starter as he pitches in his first full season since undergoing Tommy John surgery, followed by Jeff Samardzija, Gausman and Smyly. Beyond that, Logan Webb and Tyler Beede are front-runners to round out the starting staff, but Webb will be on an innings limit in 2020 and could be protected early in the season. Dereck Rodríguez, Tyler Anderson and Shaun Anderson will be competing for reps also.