San Francisco Giants right-hander Jordan Hicks (shoulder) returned from the injured list on Saturday. Hicks was used immediately in a relief role on Saturday night, throwing an inning and giving up two hits but no runs in his first appearance since Aug. 24. Hicks has four wins and one save in 29 games this year covering 109 innings. The veteran has a 3.87 ERA and 1.42 WHIP this season for San Francisco, and his role for next year is undetermined at this time. Hicks began the year as a starter and was starting games through mid-July before the Gigantes moved him to their bullpen. Barring an injury heading into the offseason, Hicks will likely return to a starting role in 2025.

The San Francisco Giants placed right-hander Jordan Hicks on the 15-day injured list with right shoulder inflammation ahead of Tuesday's game against the hosting Milwaukee Brewers. Hicks has been battling a lingering shoulder issue and was unavailable for Friday's contest against the Seattle Mariners after feeling a "zinger" down his right arm on two of his final three warmup pitches, but he was cleared to pitch after playing catch without issue the following day before eventually going on the IL. Hicks is 4-7 with a 3.90 ERA this year, making 20 starts before being moved to the bullpen in late July. The 27-year-old righty has made eight appearances in relief and logged 108 1/3 innings overall for the Giants this season. Ryan Walker and Camilo Doval figure to share save chances in San Francisco until Hicks is back in the mix, which likely won't be until mid-September.

San Francisco Giants pitcher Jordan Hicks was mentioned by manager Bob Melvin as a potential option for the Giants' closing role after the club optioned Camilo Doval on Friday, but not quite yet. Melvin was hesitant to announce who'd get the closer role, and left Hicks' chances simply as a possibility. The 27-year-old has worked out of the bullpen for most of his career and was moved into San Francisco's bullpen in late July to protect his workload to finish the season. With Blake Snell and Robbie Ray coming back into San Francisco's rotation recently, it's provided the Giants some flexibility to keep Hicks in his familiar role. At three games back of a wild-card spot in the National League, San Francisco will stay aggressive as they look to snag a playoff spot. Hicks could be in line for valuable saves, and fantasy managers looking for closer help should be prepared for him to slide into that role yet again. In addition to Hicks, Ryan Walker, ... [More]

San Francisco Giants right-hander Jordan Hicks will not make the start on Sunday versus the visiting Colorado Rockies and will instead be moved to the bullpen to protect his career-high workload the rest of the way in 2024. The Giants will roll with left-hander Erik Miller as the opener in this one, with Hicks possibly come on in a relief role later in the ballgame. San Francisco was already preparing to move the 27-year-old Hicks to a bullpen role after he potentially made his final start of the year on Sunday. He gave up four runs while walking five and striking out seven in 3 2/3 innings in his last start against the division-rival Los Angeles Dodgers and admitted that he has been feeling the effects of an elevated workload this year. His recent results have reflected that, as he's gone 0-4 with an 8.18 ERA and 1.95 WHIP in his last 22 innings pitched.

The original plan for the San Francisco Giants was to give right-hander Jordan Hicks one more start this Sunday against the visiting Colorado Rockies and then meet to discuss his role for August and September. But after Hicks allowed four runs to the division-rival Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday and admitted his body still feels "a little work down," the Giants will accelerate those talks and will possibly move Hicks to the bullpen this weekend. The issue is complicated this weekend by the fact that Giants have a doubleheader on Saturday, but either way, his fantasy value is plummeting in the second half. He has thrown 98 2/3 innings in 2024 in his transition to a starting role and is already 21 frames past his previous career-high. If Hicks makes one more start, it might last around three innings, so fantasy managers shouldn't start him.

San Francisco Giants right-hander Jordan Hicks has been scratched from Sunday's scheduled start against the hosting Colorado Rockies. Instead, 22-year-old Hayden Birdsong will get the ball on Sunday for his fifth career big-league start. Hicks transitioned to a starter after inking a four-year deal with the Giants this past winter and has posted a solid 3.79 ERA across 19 outings on the season. However, his 95 innings pitched this season are already a career-high and his current 20.3% K% is a career-low at this point in the season. There haven't been any reports of an injury but it's worth noting that Hicks recently stated his body is "feeling it a bit more than past seasons". The run prevention is solid but his low strikeout rate combined with a potential return to the bullpen -- or the injured list -- puts a solid damper on his fantasy value.

San Francisco Giants right-hander Jordan Hicks admitted that his increased workload as a starter in 2024 in his first year with the Giants has affected him as the season progresses. "I'd say my body in general is just feeling it a little bit more than in past seasons," Hicks said. Coming into this season, the 27-year-old hadn't thrown more than 77 2/3 innings in a single season. He's already at 95 innings in 2024 in a starting role with the Giants, and his results of late would indicate that he's already starting to tire. Hicks allowed a season-high five earned runs on eight hits while walking one and striking out only one in a loss to the Blue Jays his last time out on Thursday and has surrendered 16 earned runs with eight walks and 15 K's in 18 1/3 innings in his last four starts. Fantasy managers may want to prepare for Hicks' workload to be limited in the second half.

San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Jordan Hicks (4-5) picked up the loss Wednesday night, going five innings with three earned runs on eight hits and two walks with six strikeouts in a 3-1 loss to the Atlanta Braves. Hicks pitched decently overall, but he was no match for his counterpart on the rubber, who dominated his way through the Giants lineup. It was inevitable Hicks was going to come back to Earth after the incredible month of April he had, but in his first career season as a starting pitcher, he's shown enough poise and talent to stay in the rotation now and for the foreseeable future. One thing fantasy managers must keep tabs on is that he's already at a career-high 90 innings pitched on the season, which means his second-half value could plummet, depending on how the Giants decide to deploy him this summer. He could lose value in quality-starts leagues moving forward and could potentially be moved to the bullpen at some point to preserve his arm to run it back as a starting pitcher again in 2025.

San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Jordan Hicks continued his remarkable season, allowing only two runs in five innings while recording four strikeouts and zero walks on Monday. The right-hander picked up a no-decision in an extra-inning 6-4 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers. Hicks hasn't allowed more than three runs in nine straight starts to begin the season. One has to wonder if the pitch-to-contact method is the reason for his breakout campaign. Where things sit on Monday, he's averaging only 0.81 strikeouts per inning. Last season, he averaged 1.25 strikeouts per inning. Fantasy managers will certainly take the hit in strikeouts for the 3-1 record, 2.44 ERA, and 1.15 WHIP. Hicks' next matchup will be against the Colorado Rockies.

San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Jordan Hicks worked around a tough matchup in Monday's 6-4 extra-innings loss to the Dodgers. Hicks pitched five innings, allowing two runs on seven hits (including a solo home run) and no walks with four strikeouts. The 27-year-old has re-adjusted to a starting role quite well with a 3-1 record and a 2.44 ERA in nine starts and 48 IP. His next start should be much more favorable in a home matchup against the Rockies.

San Francisco Giants right-hander Jordan Hicks (side) is scheduled to make the start on Friday in the series opener in Philadelphia against the Phillies. Hicks felt some tightness in his side in his last start on Saturday against the Pittsburgh Pirates, but he managed it well and struck out a season-high nine batters while giving up just one earned run in six innings. There was a lot to be skeptical about from Hicks from a fantasy perspective with his move to a full-time starting role in 2024, mainly because of his history with injuries as a hard-throwing reliever. However, he's excelling so far in San Fran and has gone 2-0 with a fantastic 1.59 ERA (3.08 FIP) and 0.91 WHIP with 27 K's and 10 walks in 34 innings over his six starts. He'll face a tough matchup in a hostile environment on Friday against a Phillies offense that ranks seventh in MLB in OPS (.742), but he's been a must-start through the first month.

San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Jordan Hicks turned in another successful showing in Wednesday's 7-1 victory over the visiting Washington Nationals, allowing just one run on four hits and two walks with two strikeouts over six innings. Nationals first baseman Joey Gallo homered during the second inning, but Hicks got plenty of run support and gained his second win of the season. The hard-throwing 27-year-old right-hander's first stint as a starter with the St. Louis Cardinals back in 2022 was a totally failed endeavor, but he's transitioning to the role very smoothly to begin 2024. Hicks now owns a shiny 1.00 ERA and 0.83 WHIP with 13 punchouts across 18 innings thus far, and he boasts more strikeout upside than he's shown to this point. It remains to be seen how his arm handles the workload over the course of a full season, but he's a must-roster fantasy player ahead of next Tuesday's start against the 1-11 Miami Marlins.

San Francisco Giants right-hander Jordan Hicks has been working on his split-changeup as he transitions from a relieving to a starting role with the Giants this year. Hicks threw the pitch hardly ever in his relief role at the back of the bullpen, but he's been working on it a lot this offseason and is expected to use it more to help him transition into a starting role in 2024. The 27-year-old hasn't had great results so far in Cactus League games, but he likes the feel he has for the pitch. The hard-throwing right-hander threw a total of 66 2/3 innings in a relief role in 2023 and has never gone beyond 105 frames in a single season, so fantasy managers should expect Hicks' upside to be rather limited in his first year in the Bay Area, even if he sticks in the rotation all year.

The San Francisco Giants are committed to using right-hander Jordan Hicks as a "conventional starter" in 2024, and he'll start the year stretched out to five innings and/or 75 pitches. Hicks is excited for the opportunity to be a starter that he hasn't yet received in the big leagues. The 27-year-old hard-throwing right-hander has never thrown more than 77 2/3 innings in the big leagues in a single season, and durability hasn't exactly been his strong suit, so it's a bit of a risk turning him into a starter. He'll also be on an innings limit in his first year in San Francisco, which will surely limit his fantasy ceiling. But Hicks throws as hard as anyone in the majors and had career-highs in strikeouts (81) and strikeout rate (28.4%) in 65 2/3 relief innings for the St. Louis Cardinals and Toronto Blue Jays in 2023. Pitching half his games in San Fran will also make him appealing when he's on the mound.

Free-agent right-hander Jordan Hicks has signed a four-year, $44 million deal with the San Francisco Giants. In a little bit of a surprising twist, the Giants plan to use Hicks as a starter rather than out of the back end of their bullpen. Just eight of Hicks' 212 big-league appearances have been starts, and the results have been quite different, as he sports a 5.47 ERA in a 26 1/3-inning sample as a starter versus a 3.65 ERA in 217 frames as a reliever for his career. The move is even more surprising, considering the 27-year-old is coming off of a big bounce-back season out of the bullpen, posting a 3.29 ERA alongside a career-best 28.4% strikeout rate across 65 appearances between the Cardinals and Blue Jays in 2023. Coming off of a 65 2/3-inning season, it's unclear how many starts Hicks will be able to make with a history of arm injuries to consider as well.

Free-agent reliever Jordan Hicks is receiving interest from the New York Yankees on the open market. The right-hander is coming off a bounce-back season split between the Cardinals and Blue Jays, as he tossed a 3.29 ERA across 65 appearances, recording 12 saves in the process. The 27-year-old posted a 5.40 ERA in 10 outings coming off of Tommy John surgery in the 2021 season and worked to a 4.84 mark in the 2022 campaign, but looked far more like his earlier career self in the 2023 campaign. The flame-thrower averaged 100.3 mph on his four-seam fastball in 2023 versus a 98 mph average in 2022, while he also averaged 100.2 mph on his sinker, a pitch he used more than 64% of the time. The Yankees are likely in the market for pitching following Wednesday's seven-player deal with the Padres for Juan Soto in which they sent four pitchers to San Diego.

Toronto Blue Jays relief pitcher Jordan Hicks earned his 12th save of the season in Monday's 6-3 win over the Nationals. Hicks came in to pitch the top of the ninth inning up by three. He got the first two outs on a flyout and a groundout, allowed a walk, and ended the game with a groundout. Jordan Romano pitched 1 2/3 innings in Sunday's game, so he was likely unavailable to close this one out. While Hicks has pitched well this season with a 3.74 ERA and 11.72 K/9 rate, his fantasy value remains capped as Romano is the clear primary closer for the Blue Jays.

Toronto Blue Jays relief pitcher Jordan Hicks was called upon to record the final out of Wednesday's game against the Cleveland Guardians. The right-hander entered the game with two outs and a runner on with a one-run lead in the ninth inning. He was able to record the final out of the game and earn his 11th save and his third with Toronto. The expectation is that Hicks will continue getting save chances until Jordan Romano (back) returns.

Toronto Blue Jays relief pitcher Jordan Hicks picked up his 10th save of the season in Monday's 3-1 win over the Guardians. Hicks entered the game to pitch the bottom of the ninth up by two. He hit the first batter he faced and allowed a single, got the first two outs on a groundout and a flyout, allowed a walk to load the bases, and got the final out on a groundout. The 26-year-old has now converted both of his save opportunities since joining the Blue Jays and should be in line for more with Jordan Romano (back) on the injured list with lower-back inflammation. Erik Swanson has also converted both of his save opportunities in that time, so both Hicks and Swanson may be worth a look in roto leagues.

The Toronto Blue Jays have traded for St. Louis Cardinals relief pitcher Jordan Hicks in exchange for right-handed pitchers Sem Robberse and Adam Kloffenstein. Robberse represents Toronto's No. 7 prospect, per Pipeline. The Jays waste little time enhancing their bullpen after Jordan Romano (back) hit the 15-day injured list on Saturday. The flame-throwing Hicks has revitalized his career to a degree in 2023 after several throwing-arm injuries slowed him in recent years following 2019 Tommy John surgery. The 26-year-old quickly seized the interim closing role in St. Louis in the absence of Ryan Helsley (forearm), piling up eight saves since June 17. Walks remain an Achilles heel, but Hicks totes a 3.67 ERA, 1.51 WHIP, and 31.2% strikeout rate through 41 2/3 innings to his new club. The right-hander has a chance to secure Toronto's temporary ninth-inning gig right away, but Hicks would stand to lose a substantial share of save chances upon Romano's eventual return.