The Chicago Cubs Have Competition to Sign Lucas Giolito
The Chicago Cubs are reportedly eyeing right-handed starting pitcher Lucas Giolito, as the free agent remains unsigned after his return to the mound with the Boston Red Sox in 2025. Although Giolito put up good results, teams didn’t come up to his price in the offseason and now he might be given a lifeline following some injuries. The Cubs are looking to bring in another starter after Cade Horton was ruled out for the rest of the 2026 season with an elbow injury, so Giolito makes sense as a guy who will at the very least eat innings at the back end of the rotation.
However, the Cubs are facing fierce competition for Giolito as The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reported that the San Diego Padres are also a contender to sign the former Chicago White Sox ace.
We know about the Cubs’ injuries. Horton will undergo season-ending elbow surgery, while the team has also been without its Opening Day starter, Matthew Boyd. The bullpen has lost their top two free agent relievers in Phil Maton and Hunter Harvey, and although Colin Rea has been great filling in alongside Javier Assad, the Cubs surely want to prevent a disaster later in the season. So, signing Giolito does seem like an ideal move for the Cubs.
In 2025, Giolito returned from elbow surgery and made 26 starts for the Red Sox. The right-hander eventually settled in after a rough stretch early in the season. He posted a 3.41 ERA with 121 strikeouts in 145 innings. Giolito had a great end to his year, as he had a 2.70 ERA in his final 11 starts. However, the strikeout rate was below average and he was walking 11% of the batters he faced, so the league has obviously been skeptical of how good he can actually be based on some good fortune in 2025.
The Padres just lost Nick Pivetta with an elbow issue, so they need backup in the rotation as well. Yet, a Giolito pursuit might be a little trickier for the Padres than the Cubs at this point.
The Padres’ interest in Giolito, meanwhile, may be complicated by the final stages of the franchise’s ongoing sale process, which could limit the baseball operations department’s financial flexibility.
We’ll see if Giolito can actually reach an agreement with the Cubs or any other team. He recently said on a podcast how he simply hasn’t been able to negotiate a fair deal from his perspective, so this is definitely a money issue because teams have been calling.
If the Cubs do sign Giolito, he’ll most likely need to ramp up in the minor leagues despite the pitcher staying active on his own. It’s already the middle of April, so May could ultimately be Giolito’s debut if he signs within the net week or so.
This report definitely seemed like the last public attempt from Giolito’s camp right before a deal is signed. So, it wouldn’t be surprising if Giolito finally gets a contract done soon.