Giants Claim Former All-Star Pitcher Off Waivers

The battle for the NL West crown is turning into an arms race, quite literally. After the Los Angeles Dodgers finished the MLB trade deadline with the blockbuster splash for Max Scherzer, the San Francisco Giants answered on Monday.

San Francisco claimed former All-Star pitcher Jose Quintana off of waivers from the Los Angeles Angels. It's not the same level of elite talent as Scherzer, but this could prove a valuable piece down the stretch.

Both sides remain on a collision course to battle for NL supremacy down the stretch and it will be all hands on deck. San Francisco holds a slim 2.5-game lead over the Dodgers with their league-leading 84-46 overall record. The rivals will meet for one three-game set in this last month of baseball.

Throughout the year, pitching has led the way for these two powerhouse teams. Los Angeles (3.02) and San Francisco (3.28) rank first and second, respectively, in team ERA.

Given his struggles in 2021, the addition of Quintana isn't a huge splash. The lefty saw action in 24 games for the Angeles while pitching to a disappointing 6.75 ERA. His All-Star days are behind him as Quintana last pitched to a sub-3.50 ERA in 2016, but he could add valuable depth to the Giants bullpen.

Quintana is even valuable in a situation where he eats up innings as the Giants get ready for a deep postseason run. Currently, Los Angeles holds the upper hand in the betting odds. The Dodgers sit with leading +270 odds to win the World Series on FanDuel Sportsbook, while the Giants retain +900 odds.

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Adam Taylor McKillop is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Adam Taylor also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username atmckillop. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.