Free agent Lucas Giolito has just 1 request for his next MLB team

The 2026 MLB season is nearly three weeks old, but Lucas Giolito remains a free agent despite a solid season with the Boston Red Sox last year. He signed a two-year deal with Boston before the 2024 season, missing the campaign with an elbow injury. Giolito spoke with the Baseball Isn’t Boring podcast about what he wants from his next team.

“The last few months have been very strange, to where talks seem like they’re heating up, and then it’s like, ‘OK, never mind. I just want to play for close to what my value is,” Giolito said, per MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand.

Giolito made 26 starts for the Red Sox, posting a respectable 3.41 ERA in 145 innings. He did not make a playoff start in their three-game October stint, but thought he had done enough for a solid contract. With all of the money thrown around this offseason, none of it went to Giolito.

Rumors have heated up in recent days, with the Chicago Cubs and San Diego Padres showing interest in the lefty. The Cubs have dealt with a bevy of pitching injuries, recently losing Cade Horton to an elbow injury. The Padres just put Nick Pivetta on the injured list with elbow inflammation.

With injuries opening up opportunities in starting rotations, teams are more likely to pay Giolito what he is requesting. The Red Sox replaced him with Sonny Gray and Johan Oviedo in trades, but could their poor start have them calling the starter? On the flip side, the Minnesota Twins have started hotter than expected and never replaced Pablo Lopez. Could this be their opportunity to do that?

There are plenty of options for Giolito as the season continues. Will he end up pitching valuable innings in a playoff game? Or will a bottom dweller fork over the money?

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