A starter is off the market.
On Wednesday afternoon, Shayna Rubin of the San Francisco Chronicle reported that the San Francisco Giants have signed Tyler Mahle to a one-year deal.
The Giants are close to signing RHP Tyler Mahle to a one-year deal, likely (but not certainly) rounding out the rotation for 2026.https://t.co/bcIQDXSi7j
— Shayna Rubin (@ShaynaRubin) December 31, 2025
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Mahle, 31, has spent the past two seasons with the Texas Rangers. In 2025, the right-handed pitcher finished the year with a 2.18 ERA and 3.37 FIP in 86.2 innings pitched, with a 19.1 K% and an 8.4 BB%. However, Mahle hasn’t hit the 100 innings pitched mark since 2022, as he spent 2023 and 2024 recovering from Tommy John Surgery.
When healthy, Mahle is an effective starter. In 2021 with the Cincinnati Reds, he had a 3.76 ERA and 3.80 FIP in 180 innings pitched, along with a 27.7 K% and 8.4 BB%, by far the best season of his career. Drafted in the seventh round of the 2013 by the Reds, Mahle has pitched for the Ohioan team, the Minnesota Twins, and Rangers in his nine-season career.
For his entire career, Mahle has a 4.07 ERA and 4.16 FIP in 735 innings pitched, with a 24.1 K% and 8.5 BB%. His Steamer projections according to Fangraphs has him owning a 4.33 ERA and 4.37 FIP in 144 innings pitched, with a 19.9 K% and 7.6 BB%.
This isn’t the first starter that the Giants have signed this off-season, having come to terms with Adrian Houser this month. This off-season, they’re looking to replace the departing Justin Verlander, who remains a free agent.
Unlike the relief market, there are still a handful of notable starting pitchers remaining on the market. Framber Valdez, Ranger Suárez, Tatsuya Imai, and Zac Gallen all still haven’t signed. Of course, the Toronto Blue Jays did their starting pitching shopping early, signing Dylan Cease in late November and Cody Ponce in early December.
Hopefully, the dominos start to fall soon. On top of the starting pitching market moving slowly, so too is the position player market. Entering the New Year, Kyle Tucker, Bo Bichette, and Alex Bregman all remain available with no end in sight.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Blue Jays Nation, Oilersnation, and FlamesNation. She can be followed on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.