Conflicting reports give SF Giants hope in Zac Gallen sweepstakes

The SF Giants have been heavily connected to free agent starting pitcher Zac Gallen. There was a report on Saturday that Gallen agreed to a deal with the Chicago Cubs but that report was subsequently debunked which keeps the Giants alive.

Bob Nightengale of USA Today took to social media to report that Gallen and the Cubs were in agreement on a deal. Then, Jeff Passan of ESPN reported that Gallen had not signed a deal and was not close to signing.

Conflicting reports keep SF Giants alive in Zac Gallen chase

Nightengale posted an update that the Cubs were hopeful to sign Gallen but a deal was not done. Nightengale has a bit of a reputation for not always being accurate in his reporting so it is best to take what he reports with a grain of salt until others confirm it.

What these conflicting reports mean is that the Giants still have a chance at Gallen. He would make sense as a No. 3 starter in the rotation and seems like he will not command the long-term, nine-figure contract that the Giants are so reluctant to give to a starting pitcher. Plus, the Giants would be stealing him away from an NL West rival in the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Gallen is coming off a rough 2025 season in Arizona as he posted a 4.83 ERA in 33 starts and 192 innings pitched. He was an All-Star in 2023 and had a sub-4.00 ERA in every season from 2022 to 2024 so a charitable view of 2025 is that it was an aberration while a less charitable view would be that he is on the decline.

With the Giants almost certainly not making a serious run at the premier free agent pitchers on the market like Tatsuya Imai and Framber Valdez, Gallen fits nicely into that mid-tier of starting pitchers where the Giants will be more comfortable.

He is not going to be cheap by any means, though. He still seems like to command something like a three-year contract worth at least $20 million per year so he would still represent a hefty investment.

We will see how active the Giants end up being in the pursuit of Gallen. It could signal just how aggressive they plan to be this offseason when all indications have pointed to them shying away from big deals.

If they are not willing to pay up for Gallen then we should probably assume the team will be looking more at cheaper pitchers and perhaps even one-year options along the lines of what they did with Justin Verlander last season.