What's Next For San Francisco Giants After Max Fried Agrees With Yankees?

The San Francisco Giants have one less pitching option available to them as Max Fried reaches a massive agreement with the New York Yankees.

Sep 27, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Max Fried (54) acknowledges fans after a victory over the Kansas City Royals at Truist Park. / Brett Davis-Imagn Images

The San Francisco Giants will have one less pitching option available to them in free agency as Max Fried reportedly reached a deal with the New York Yankees.

ESPN Insider Jeff Passan broke the news on Tuesday afternoon that Fried and the Yankees came to an agreement on a massive eight-year, $218 million deal. It comes with the largest amount of guaranteed money for a left-handed pitcher in baseball history.

Fried had a bit of an off-year last season, but that still means he had a 3.25 ERA. He's been a fairly consistent player throughout his career and has a 2.81 ERA overall for the last five seasons.

The southpaw would have been the perfect supplement to the roster after losing Blake Snell to the Los Angeles Dodgers, but the Giants will now need to look elsewhere.

There are still some intriguing options available to San Francisco if they feel the need to add to their pitching staff.

RHP Roki Sasaki

Sasaki is obviously the golden goose of this free agent class, but it will mostly come down to how good the Giants can pitch themselves to the Japanese phenom.

Along with the Dodgers, they can offer the least to him at $5.146 million. The money doesn't seem to be the biggest worry for him.

RHP Corbin Burnes

If Buster Posey actually does have the green light to still go after a true ace after signing Willy Adames, Burnes makes the most sense as the best MLB pitcher on the market.

He was the closest to his Cy Young form in years with the Baltimore Orioles in 2024. The 30-year-old posted a 2.92 ERA with an impressive 1.096 WHIP. The biggest problem with him is just that he is going to draw such a large price tag.

RHP Walker Buehler

Buehler has not been the same pitcher as he was at the onset of his career, but finished last season strong.

He got the final out in the World Series, had a great postseason and had a solid close to the regular season. If he can ride that momentum into his next campaign, he could be a great value add.

LHP Sean Manaea

Manaea would be a solid add as another southpaw, but would likely be a slight disappointment given the expectations of going after another ace.

He is coming off his best season in years, though, with a 3.47 ERA and 1.084 WHIP for the New York Mets.

It would be a reunion after his disappointing 2023 campaign in San Francisco.