Jordan Hicks’ 2025 debut “gave the giants the reason to be optimistic

In the victory of the giants 7-2 on Monday evening on the astros, Jordan Hicks launched six inning without a score and allowed only one shot. He launched 72 shots, 51 of them for the strikes. He hit 100 mph on the radar gun in the first inning and hit 98.9 mph in his final inning. He threw his two -thirds Platin of the time and out of nine that the astros put into play, only three had an average of jokes waiting for over .200.

It is irresponsible to draw large conclusions after a single beginning*, but it is perfectly reasonable to ask whether the largest out -of -season move for the giants he was working in advance in the rotation. If this is what appears with an entire offseason to increase the strength for rotation, its ceiling could have been unjustly neglected.

* While On Monday the Hicks of Hicks also seemed good.

In retrospective, it was impressive that Hicks was effective at the beginning of last season like him. Before signing with the giants, he had a lot of pretenders as relief, with Yankees, Red Sox, Astros, Rangers, Angels, Orioles and other attached to one point, but wanted to start. He never issued an ultimatum to the teams concerned, saying that it would not do it Signing by relief, but delayed the signature long enough to see if a team would have given him a possibility as an appetizer, e This is how it ended with the giants instead of, let’s say, the Phillies.

In mid -January, Hicks got his desire … and about 32 days later, he reported to the spring training in Scottsdale. Not only was he only a month to prepare physically for the rotation, but had spent the previous months without preparation guided by the team. There were no weekly checks with the Falange of the Giants of performance scientists, and there was no list of best practices of his new organization to help him facilitate a full-time transition, at least not before mid-January.

He showed. The Hicks platinum went from the average of 97.3 mph in its first start last season at 94.8 in its second. At the end of April last April, Hicks had launched about half of the number of shots he had ever launched in a season in his career. In mid -July, just before being removed from the rotation and given some rest, his platinum was on average 92.2 and a couple was even in the 80s. The idea could have made sense, but the execution was less than desirable. Not because someone was guilty, necessarily, but because there was not enough time to do it last out of season.

It was worth trying the idea, and it was worth it to be right. While Hicks had oscillations and miss you on his coat and splitter on Monday, he dominated by launching the platin after the platin. The Astros bathers knew that many of them could expect in an AT-BAT. Everything they had to do was sit and wait for about a platinum from the 90s and turn on it. And all you have to do to become rich is to invent something that everyone needs.

The beginning of Hicks was a proof of the concept, and while there will be approaches that are successful against him in the future, it was a reminder that there are not many good options for the bathers when he launches as he did on Monday. The bathers can look for launches or have an approach in the opposite field, but if Hicks launches its best platinas where he wants, it doesn’t matter if it is the first, the second or third time through the order. He has never stopped being one of the most unusual and effective weapons in the history of baseball.

This is a dynamic different from the one that is generally seen with unborn appetizers. A young pitcher with an electric arm could praise his raw things, but could arrive with a warning like “if only he could launch more shots” or “if only he could keep the ball lower”. A veteran could get the “if only he could remain healthy” or “if he only had more speeds and/or secondary things”. With Hicks, you spend that he can maintain his strength and resistance for the entire season. It is not the typical if only. It could also be one of the easiest sectors to solve.

This does not mean that this ha fixed state. Hicks had his best speed of the 2024 season at his first start, with the adrenaline who probably played a part. On Monday he had 90 friends and family in the stands for his first start of the city in Houston, which is certainly a situation of creating adrenaline. And nobody will receive a definitive response to Hicks’ power of resistance after his second start or his third. Everyone may have to wait until August or September to find out if the experiment is a success under the new improved conditions of a low structured season.

The Red Sox have high expectations for Garrett Crochet, a 26 -year -old left -handed with superlative things, which converted to rotation last season with great success. They are giving him An extension of six years and $ 170 million Because they believe in the beautiful dream of his ceiling. His stuff is so good. Crochet and hicks are mandarins and oranges, perhaps, but they are not apples and oranges. Hicks is also 20 years old with an arsenal of unicorn shots. The crochet crochet marked on average 75 shots and 4.6 ining per start last season after a low season to prepare for the rotation, and Hicks scored on average 88 shots and 4.9 inning per start without a low season to prepare for the rotation (even if it should be noted that the crochet crochet was in its first complete season from the intervention of Tommy John). A pitcher was the treasure of the voices on trade off season, and the other was a kind of rethinking. The situations are not identical, but the gap between them is not so large.

It was moderately surprising that Buster Posey and the new front office have maintained Hicks in the rotation because It was an idea from the last front officeBut it took a start to make them look like genes. While it will take more dozens to make them look like genes, the beginning of Monday clarified that it is a dream that is worth chasing. There is an advantage in every initial pitcher that giants will use this season, but there may be more advantage in Hicks than anyone than them. Maybe he should have obtained more clamor always.

(Photo: Tim Warner / Getty Images)