Heading into the 2026 Major League Baseball season, the San Francisco Giants had talent in place on the roster, a new manager in the building and hopes of finally contending. 

Instead of making the latter a reality, the Giants finished with a 65-97 record, their worst in nearly a decade. 

San Francisco has problems it needs to urgently address if president of baseball operations Buster Posey is going to keep his job. Pitching is a big issue, and there may be some solid options in the free agent market to help address it.

One such option the Giants’ front office should identify is Los Angeles Dodgers left-hander Kris Bubic.

Bubic, 29, Is a native of Cupertino, Calif. He played collegiately at Stanford before being selected by the Kansas City Royals in the 2018 MLB Draft.

Bubic made his MLB debut on July 31, 2020, and from that point forward, he had to go through adversity as a pitcher and gain experience. 

In 2025, Bubic made 20 starts for Kansas City and posted the first winning record of his career, finishing 8-7 with a 2.55 ERA across 116.1 innings of work. After making nine starts with the Royals this season and going 3-2 with a 4.11 ERA, Bubic was traded to the Dodgers at the Deadline.

Over the remainder of the regular season, Bubic made five relief appearances for Los Angeles and went 1-0 while striking out five batters and allowing four hits over 4.2 shutout innings of work. He played the 2026 season on a one-year, $6.1 million contract, which he settled in arbitration with Kansas City. Therefore, he is an affordable option.

Moreover, he is a California native, and unless the Dodgers actively make an effort to re-sign him, the thought of playing in San Francisco may be intriguing for him and mutually beneficial. 

Bubic has demonstrated growth over the past two years, and while he is certainly no ace, there is a chance he could add some stability for the Giants, either as a starter or in a relief role, at a friendly price point.

This season, the Giants finished 23rd out of 30 teams in ERA (4.33), 27th in strikeouts (1,204), 24th in WHIP (1.36) and 18th in opponent batting average (.248). 

Bubic should not be the only signing that San Francisco makes in terms of pitching, nor should any other pitcher of his caliber. But he could be a complementary piece to a bigger deal if the Giants choose to go such a route. 

Whatever decision gets made, upgrading the product on the mound needs to be a point of emphasis.