Padres One Of Two Primary Suitors For Lucas Giolito

The competition for right-handed starter Lucas Giolito is heating up, which means there could be a decision soon on one of the top free agents from this past offseason.

According to The Athletic on Tuesday, the San Diego Padres and Chicago Cubs are the top contenders to land the 2019 All-Star who has yet to find a home despite a moderately successful 2025, his first season back from Tommy John surgery. Giolito had a 4.17 FIP (3.41 ERA) in 26 starts for the Boston Red Sox last year.

The Padres and Cubs are in need of fortifying their starting rotations.

Padres Opening Day starter Nick Pivetta left Sunday's game with stiffness in his right elbow. More on his fate, which is likely to include a trip to the injured list, could be revealed Tuesday.

The Cubs are in a more precarious situation. Right-hander Cade Horton, last year's NL Rookie of the Year runner-up, is likely to undergo season-ending surgery on his right UCL. Left-hander Matthew Boyd, the Cubs' Opening Day starter who is on the 15-day injured list with a strained left biceps, is slated to have one rehab appearance before rejoining the rotation next week.

Giolito, who had three top-11 finishes in AL Cy Young Award voting (2019-2021) with the Chicago White Sox, is a Southern California native who has said he has been throwing bullpen sessions of 75 pitches to stay in shape and hasn't signed because no team has met his price.