The San Francisco Giants bet big that Johnny Cueto is more World Series hero than late-season goat, agreeing to sign the best remaining free-agent pitcher on the market for six years and $130 million, a source familiar with the contract told Yahoo Sports on Monday afternoon.

Cueto, 29, vacillated between brilliance and implosion after a trade-deadline deal to the Kansas City Royals thrust him into the playoff crucible. His final game with Kansas City was his best, a complete-game two-hitter in Game 2 of the World Series that erased an ALCS implosion and showcased the excellence he had shown for half a decade.

With the Cincinnati Reds, Cueto grew into one of the game's most consistent starters, his ERA starting with a "2" for four consecutive years and his innings total typically topping 200. The right-hander, signed by the Reds out of the Dominican Republic, was eyeing a monster payday all season and landed it with the aggressive Giants. He got it, as well as an opt-out clause after two years, according to ESPN, which first reported the news of the agreement.

After turning down $120 million from the Arizona Diamondbacks, who later gave Zack Greinke more than $200 million, Cueto waited out the market and leapt at the chance to join a Giants team loading up for another even-year World Series run. Earlier in the offseason, San Francisco inked right-hander Jeff Samardzija to a five-year, $90 million deal, banking on his 2015 season as an anomaly and hoping that pitching in front of the Giants' strong defense and in pitcher-friendly AT&T Park would help him return to his previous level.