Cubs are eyeing Lucas Giolito to bolster pitching depth. With injuries mounting, Chicago will have to meet the former All-Star's substantial contract demands.
The Chicago Cubs have officially been linked to free agent starting pitcher Lucas Giolito.
Ken Rosenthal reported that the Cubs are one of two teams that are eyeing the right-hander in free agency. The San Diego Padres are the other team reportedly looking to sign Giolito at the moment.
“The Cubs project Giolito, 31, as more of a back-of-the-rotation starter, and the fact that he missed all of spring training and at least part of April might further temper expectations,” Rosenthal wrote. “His addition would potentially help the bullpen by bumping a pitcher from the rotation, but it’s unclear when exactly he would be ready to compete in a major-league game.”
Signing Giolito makes too much sense for the Cubs. Their pitching depth has been tested in the early going, and star pitcher Cade Horton is out for the season with a torn UCL. The team simply needs to find a replacement for him.
While Colin Rea and Javier Assad are fine internal replacements, Giolito is a slight upgrade over both of those pitchers. More importantly, he would give the Cubs some more depth at the position.
The Cubs' interest in Giolito suggests they are at least considering signing the former Red Sox pitcher. However, it won’t be cheap to sign him.
Reports indicate that the main reason Giolito remains unsigned into the middle of April is because of his high contract demands. The right-hander has recently said that he will not sign any deal below his value.
“I just want to play for close to what my value is,” Giolito said on the Baseball Isn’t Boring podcast. “Everything is based on these models now, right? Everyone uses projection and models and things like that to kind of determine. My agency does the same thing. So it’s like, ‘All right, cool, give me something that’s relatively close to that, and let’s go and get it.’”
It’s unclear what type of money Giolito is actually commanding on the free agent market right now, but he appears to be holding firm on a number he has in mind. His market value on Spotrac sits around $20 million per season.
While there’s no indication that’s the amount Giolito wants, it’s hard to imagine the Cubs meeting him at his price point. The team is already $4 million over the luxury tax, and it seems like the right-hander will not settle for anything less than his value.
But signing Giolito would boost the Cubs rotation.
The former All-Star finished with a 3.41 ERA and 121 strikeouts across 145 innings pitched in 2025. He threw a quality start in 14 of his 26 starts, and those strong numbers came in his first season back from elbow surgery.
Giolito has been staying in baseball shape over the past few months. So, there wouldn’t be much of a ramp-up process for him. He is throwing around 75 pitches in his bullpen sessions.
Giolito would be the perfect fit for the backend of the Cubs rotation. It all comes down to whether president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer will pay him what he wants in free agency.