Red Sox Reportedly Will Be In Mix For Former All-Star Pitcher; Bounce-Back Candidate

It sounds like the Red Sox could end up being interested in acquiring a former All-Star

The Boston Red Sox have some serious work to do in the starting rotation.

Boston had one of the weakest rotations in baseball in 2023, but luckily for the club, there is going to be a very deep free agent starting pitching market. The Red Sox have money to spend and likely will be looking to land a top-of-the-rotation arm, as well as a No. 3 or No. 4 hurler. 

One player the Red Sox reportedly could end up being one of the best fits for is Cleveland Guardians righty Lucas Giolito, according to The Athletic's Jim Bowden. 

"Lucas Giolito was traded from the (Chicago White Sox) to the (Los Angeles Angels) at the deadline and was later claimed on waivers by the Guardians. He went 8-15 this season with a 4.88 ERA over 33 starts (184 1/3 innings)," Bowden said. "He allowed a league-leading 41 home runs but struck out 10.0 batters per nine innings and walked 3.6 batters per nine. His best seasons were from 2019 to 2021 when he finished in the top 11 of the (American League) Cy Young Award voting all three seasons. He needs to sign with a team with a strong pitching coach and analytics staff that will treat him as a reclamation project...

"Best fits: (Tampa Bay Rays), (Los Angeles Dodgers), (Toronto Blue Jays), (San Francisco Giants), (Baltimore Orioles), Red Sox, and (Atlanta Braves). Contract prediction: two years, $24 million (with an opt-out after the first year)."

Giolito certainly is an interesting bounce-back candidate. His overall stats in 2023 may not be very impressive, but he was steady with the White Sox before being traded. He compiled a 3.79 ERA in 21 starts before joining the Angels and eventually the Guardians. Although his overall ERA doesn't jump out on paper, Giolito was dependable and led the league with 33 starts.

Boston's starting rotation struggled with health and getting deep into games. If Giolito could give them a chance to win every fifth day, that would be an upgrade in itself. At one point Giolito was one of the best right-handed pitchers in the American League. He's just 29 years old so there is real hope he could get back to that level. 

The Red Sox recently hired Craig Breslow to be the chief baseball officer and he helped drastically improve the Chicago Cubs' pitching department during his stint in the organization. Maybe he could carry that over to the Red Sox and help fix Giolito on a cheap deal.  

More MLB: Red Sox Catcher Reportedly Candidate To Be Let Go This Offseason Despite Solid Stint