Red Sox Reportedly Make Splash, Agree To Deal With Lucas Giolito

It took a little while, but the Red Sox reportedly made a rather significant offseason splash just days before the new year.

ESPN’s Jeff Passan reported Friday, citing sources, that Boston agreed to a two-year, $38.5 million contract with free agent starting pitcher Lucas Giolito.

The deal reportedly includes an opt-out clause after the 2024 season.

According to Passan, Giolito will earn an $18 million salary in 2024 and will receive a $1 million buyout if he opts out of the contract next offseason. If Giolito does not opt out after Year 1, he’ll earn a $19 million salary for 2025.

Passan added that Giolito’s deal also includes a conditional option for 2026: a $14 million club option if he throws under 140 innings in 2025, or a $19 million mutual option for 140-plus innings, with a $1.5 million buyout.

The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier and MassLive’s Chris Cotillo were among the others to report Friday that the Red Sox agreed to a contract with Giolito.

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Giolito, 29, is coming off an underwhelming 2023 season split between the Chicago White Sox, Los Angeles Angels and Cleveland Guardians, a fact that is reflected in his contract being far less lucrative than perhaps anticipated one or two years ago. The right-hander went 8-15 with a 4.88 ERA, a 5.27 FIP and a 1.313 WHIP in 33 starts (184 1/3 innings) between the three stops.

He wasn’t much better in 2022, posting an 11-9 record with a 4.90 ERA, a 4.06 FIP and a 1.435 WHIP in 30 starts (161 2/3 innings) with the White Sox. But he’s nonetheless an intriguing buy-low candidate given his impressive track record before that.

Giolito, a first-round pick in 2012, was an All-Star with Chicago in 2019, a season in which he went 14-9 with a 3.41 ERA, a 3.43 FIP and a 1.064 FIP in 29 starts (176 2/3 innings). He finished sixth in American League Cy Young voting that year, then seventh and 11th in 2020 and 2021, respectively.

Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow said he wanted to add starting pitching this offseason after the rotation struggled in 2023. He made good on his word Friday, days after the franchise lost out on Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and now it’s fair to wonder whether Breslow has anything else up his sleeve.