Spring Training is officially underway and former Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Lucas Giolito remains unsigned.
The 31-year-old right-hander spent the last two years with the Red Sox but missed the entire 2024 season after undergoing elbow surgery.
Giolito went 10-4 with a 3.41 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and 121 strikeouts across 145 innings pitched covering 26 regular season starts in 2025 but missed the playoffs due to an elbow issue.
Speaking about his former Boston teammate on Saturday, ace Garrett Crochet called it "insane" that Giolito is still unemployed.
"It’s insane," Crochet said, per MassLive's Chris Cotillo. "Very insane. It just doesn’t make a ton of sense. It’s just been that way for a while, though. The middle of the market on both the position player and pitching side kind of gets screwed and ends up either signing after the season begins or what have you."
Crochet called out teams that "aren't trying to win" when discussing Giolito's availability.
"You look at teams across the league that aren’t trying to win -- I won’t name the teams, but OK, it makes sense they’re not gonna target a guy like that," the 2025 AL Cy Young runner-up said, according to Cotillo. "But it’s at the point where it’s like, 'What even is his price range?' Because for the value he’s providing, I would say he outplayed his (Red Sox contract). If you look at the two years, OK, I get it, he blew out. But if you just look at the one year for $18 (million), I’d say he outplayed that. Then, look at what top-end pitchers (like Framber Valdez) are getting, too. When you’re looking at the ceiling and the floor, there’s not a huge difference there. There’s a lot of pedigree and a lot of recent success."
The one-time All-Star has had a "normal offseason," per Cotillo's report, after declining a $19 million mutual option to enter free agency.
Crochet and Giolito were also teammates with the Chicago White Sox from 2020 to 2024 and the former called the latter "incredibly impactful" during the 2025 campaign with the Red Sox.
"There were countless times where me and Gio were talking and it was like, 'What if I get extended? What if I stick around?' and then he ended the year on the IL and it was tough to watch," the 26-year-old southpaw said. "Being in the rotation together and being on a similar routine helped with that. I grew a huge appreciation for him, his work ethic and what he does off the field watching it up close in the dugout and not 400 feet away in the bullpen."
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