Top MLB Insider Expects San Francisco Giants Will Sign 3-Time Cy Young Award Winner

On Friday December 12, 2025, expert MLB insider Ken Rosenthal went on the Foul Territory network and reported that he “expects” that the San Francisco Giants will sign right handed pitcher Max Scherzer this offseason. 

Scherzer, 41, is an absolutely legendary pitcher. He’s a 3-time Cy Young award winner, 8-time All-Star, and 2-time World Series Champion. 

Last season for the World Series runner up Toronto Blue Jays, Scherzer had a 5-5 record with a 5.19 ERA in 17 regular season starts. But he was better  in the postseason, recording a 3.77 ERA in 14.1 innings. 

Rosenthal expects that Scherzer will end up in San Francisco because he is great friends with new Giants manager Tony Vitello. Vitello was Scherzer’s pitching coach in college when Scherzer played at the University of Missouri, and they have maintained a great relationship over the years. 

Scherzer would join a Giants rotation that currently only has 3 solidified members of the rotation: Logan Webb, Robbie Ray and Landen Roupp. Beyond those three, the Giants mostly have unproven young arms on their 40-man roster. 

Rosenthal Questions Giants Strategy Otherwise

Aside from expecting them to sign Scherzer, however, Rosenthal said that he is confused by the Giants’ offseason strategy. 

Rosenthal reported that signs seem to indicate that the Giants are not willing to spend at the top of the free agent market despite the fact that free agents like Bo Bichette and Tatsuya Imai seem to fit their roster perfectly. 

Rosenthal admitted that he understands why the Giants might be frugal with signing position players, given that they have Rafael Devers, Willy Adames and Matt Chapman already on the books for big, long term contracts. 

But he doesn’t understand why they wouldn’t go all-in and spend big on other areas of the roster, such as starting pitching and the bullpen. With big investments in the three position player superstars and a seeming commitment to being competitive in 2026, why wouldn’t the Giants keep spending to build a World Series caliber roster? 

Rosenthal concluded that he doesn’t know if the Giants are backtracking on their spending because they’ve already invested too much or if they’re just inexplicably passing on players who seem like good roster fits. 

Who Could Fill The Other Rotation Spot(s)? 

Even if the Giants sign Scherzer, they will have one open spot in their rotation. 

Sure they could go out and sign Tatsuya Imai, but according to Rosenthal, that’s really unlikely. So who else could the Giants pick to be their fourth/fifth starter? 

Hayden Birdsong, Trevor McDonald, Carson Seymour, Carson Whisenhunt and Kai-Wei Teng all made starts for the Giants at some point last season. Out of that group, Whisenhunt seems the most likely to earn a spot in the Opening Day rotation. 

Top prospect Blade Tidwell, acquired in the Tyler Rogers trade with the Mets this past trade deadline, could also be an option for the Giants. 

If the Giants did sign Scherzer, it would be really funny if they also re-signed Justin Verlander. Verlander and Scherzer have 6 Cy Youngs, 17 All-Star game appearances and 4 World Series championships between them, but they’re both in their 40s. The Giants would have 3 legends in Webb, Scherzer and Verlander, but would definitely need to keep some of those young, unproven arms fresh in case the old guys got hurt, burnt out or lost their touch. 

Giants fans, do you want to see San Francisco go out and get Max Scherzer? Who else should round out the rotation?

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