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.

The Milwaukee Brewers and right-handed reliever Devin Williams agreed to an undisclosed one-year deal to avoid salary arbitration on Thursday. The deal includes a team option for the 2025 season. Williams' 2024 salary will likely come out to around $7 million. The 29-year-old hard-throwing right-hander should be the first closer off the board in fantasy drafts in 2024 after he posted an excellent 1.53 ERA (2.66 FIP), 0.92 WHIP, a career-high 36 saves, 28 walks and 87 strikeouts in 58 2/3 innings over 61 appearances out of the bullpen. The two-time All-Star will be Milwaukee's locked-in closer heading into the 2024 season and has one of the nastiest changeups in the game.

Infielder Gleyber Torres and the New York Yankees agreed to a one-year, $14.2 million deal for 2024 on Thursday to avoid salary arbitration. A career-low 14.6 percent strikeout rate helped Torres to a fine offensive season in 2023. He finished with a .273/.347/.453 slash line, an .800 OPS, 25 home runs, 28 doubles, two triples, 13 stolen bases and 90 runs scored in 672 plate appearances over a career-high 158 games played. The two-time All-Star has settled in as New York's everyday second baseman and should hit high in the batting order again in 2024, giving him plenty of fantasy appeal for a Yankees lineup that should be stronger next season. Torres has produced 24 home runs in four of his five full major-league seasons, giving fantasy managers a solid floor.

New San Diego Padres right-hander Michael King and the team agreed to a one-year, $3.15 million deal for 2024 on Thursday to avoid salary arbitration. King was part of the package sent to San Diego when the New York Yankees acquired outfielder Juan Soto in December. The 28-year-old was moved from the bullpen to the starting rotation in 2023 in the Bronx and delivered to the tune of a strong 2.75 ERA and 1.15 WHIP with 127 strikeouts in 49 outings (nine starts) over 104 2/3 innings pitched. He's expected to stay in a starting role for the Friars in his first year with the team and will have plenty of fantasy appeal with an upgrade in home ballpark. No matter what role King had in 2023, he was effective with a nearly 30 percent strikeout rate.

Right-handed reliever Clay Holmes and the New York Yankees settled at $6 million plus performance bonuses for the 2024 season on Thursday to avoid salary arbitration, according to a source. Holmes has been New York's primary closer over the last two seasons and has delivered a strong 2.70 ERA (2.75 FIP), 1.09 WHIP, 44 saves, 43 walks and 136 strikeouts over 126 2/3 relief innings in 128 appearances out of the bullpen. In addition to a career-high 24 saves in 2023, the 30-year-old had a career-high 27.1 percent strikeout rate and an elite 2.4 percent barrel rate and 66.7 percent ground-ball percentage. Holmes will enter the 2024 campaign as the Yankees' primary closer once again, giving him high-end closer appeal.