Giants, Lincecum agree to two-year deal

Opting for job stability over the chance to test free agency, right-hander Tim Lincecum agreed to re-sign with the San Francisco Giants on Tuesday.

The two-year, $35 million deal was not finalized, as Lincecum must undergo a physical, according to multiple media reports. The contract reportedly includes a full no-trade clause.

A two-time National League Cy Young Award winner earlier in his career, Lincecum was the losingest pitcher in the major league over the past two years. He went 10-14 with a 4.37 ERA in 32 starts in 2013 after going 10-15 with a 5.18 ERA in 33 starts the previous season.

The Giants were poised to make Lincecum a one-year, $14.1 million qualifying offer to put them in line for draft-pick compensation should Lincecum have signed elsewhere. The rumor mill had Lincecum eyeing a return to his home state to join the pitching-starved Seattle Mariners, but Tuesday's pre-emptive strike prevents the Mariners from having a conversation with the University of Washington product.

Lincecum, 29, captured back-to-back Cy Young Awards in 2008 and 2009, then helped pitch the Giants to the World Series championship in 2010. The Giants rolled to another World Series title in 2012, but Lincecum pitched so poorly in the regular season that he lost his spot in the rotation for the postseason. However, he pitched well as a reliever in the 2012 playoffs (1-1, 2.55 ERA).

After making his major league debut in May 2007, Lincecum went 69-41 with a 2.98 ERA over his first five seasons.

Re-signing Lincecum was the Giants' second major move in the past month. San Francisco gave Hunter Pence a five-year, $90 deal at the end of the regular season, keeping the right fielder from becoming a free agent.