Giants ink Luke Jackson, who missed '22 with TJ, to 2-year deal
Maria Guardado
@mi_guardadoThe Giants bolstered their bullpen on Monday by signing veteran right-hander Luke Jackson to a two-year, $11.5 million contract that includes a club option for the 2025 season.
Jackson, 31, missed the 2022 campaign after undergoing Tommy John surgery last April, but he enjoyed a career-best season for the World Series champion Braves in 2021, logging a 1.98 ERA with 70 strikeouts over 63 2/3 innings.
Jackson will earn $3 million in 2023 and $6.5 million in '24; his 2025 club option is worth $7 million. If the Giants choose not to exercise the option, Jackson will receive a $2 million buyout.
To clear a spot on the 40-man roster for Jackson, the Giants traded Yunior Marte, another right-handed reliever, to the Phillies in exchange for left-handed pitching prospect Erik Miller.
Miller, 24, was the Phillies¡¯ fourth-round Draft pick out of Stanford in 2019, and he recorded a 3.54 ERA in 32 appearances between Double-A Reading and Triple-A Lehigh Valley in 2022. He was ranked as the Phillies¡¯ No. 7 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline.
Jackson likely won¡¯t be available for the start of the regular season as he continues to rehab, but he should bring plenty of back-end experience to the Giants¡¯ bullpen once healthy. A former first-round Draft pick of the Rangers in 2010, Jackson served as the Braves¡¯ primary setup man in 2021, when he held opponents scoreless in nine of his 11 postseason appearances and surrendered just one hit in three outings (3 1/3 innings) during the World Series triumph over the Astros.
Despite struggling to a 6.84 ERA during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, Jackson also found success during a brief stint as Atlanta¡¯s closer in 2019, racking up 18 saves while posting a 3.84 ERA over 70 appearances. His primary pitch is his slider, which he threw 53.3% of the time in 2021, though he also features a mid-90s fastball and a curveball.
Jackson is the second major bullpen addition the Giants have made this offseason, following left-hander Taylor Rogers, who signed a three-year, $33 million deal in December. Jackson and Rogers are projected to join holdovers Camilo Doval, John Brebbia, Tyler Rogers, Scott Alexander and Jakob Junis in San Francisco¡¯s bullpen, which ranked 20th in the Majors with a 4.08 ERA in 2022.