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Padres Pursuing Free Agent Starting Pitcher Amid Nick Pivetta Injury Concern: Report

The latest rumor heightens concerns that Nick Pivetta is headed for the injured list.
J.P. Hoornstra|
Apr 12, 2026; San Diego, California, USA; San Diego Padres starting pitcher Nick Pivetta (27), left, leaves the field with a trainer during the fourth inning against the Colorado Rockies at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Denis Poroy-Imagn Images
Apr 12, 2026; San Diego, California, USA; San Diego Padres starting pitcher Nick Pivetta (27), left, leaves the field with a trainer during the fourth inning against the Colorado Rockies at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Denis Poroy-Imagn Images | Denis Poroy-Imagn Images

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San Diego Padres

The San Diego Padres are reportedly one of two teams monitoring free agent pitcher Lucas Giolito, according to sources cited by Patrick Mooney, Ken Rosenthal, Dennis Lin and Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic.

The Chicago Cubs are also tracking Giolito, who went 10-4 with a 3.41 ERA in 26 starts for the Boston Red Sox last year. The veteran right-hander is 71-66 with a 4.30 ERA in 206 games (204 starts) in nine MLB seasons.

A former All-Star, Giolito is the best available free agent still unsigned as of mid-April. He is represented by Ryan Hamill of CAA.

The report heightens the concern around Nick Pivetta. The right-hander became the Padres' de facto ace in the first year of a four-year, $55 million contract a year ago.

Pivetta exited his most recent start on Sunday with what was initially described as right elbow stiffness. If he needs time on the injured list to recover, the Padres will need a replacement, and Giolito has more upside than any of the team's in-house options.

Pivetta finished sixth in voting for the National League’s Cy Young Award last year after going 13-5 with a 2.87 ERA in 31 starts and logging 181.2 innings.

According to The Athletic, Pivetta's contract includes a provision that if he spends at least 130 consecutive days this season on the injured list because of a specified injury or related surgery, the deal would convert into a $14 million club option for 2027.

Pivetta would otherwise hold a $14 million player option.

In a recent interview with the Baseball Isn't Boring podcast, Giolito told Rob Bradford that he is throwing regularly at the Cressey Performance facility in Florida to stay sharp. If the Padres make him an offer, it might not be the first he's received since the end of last season.

“I've had a few of those moments over the last like couple months where it's like I planned something for the weekend. And it's like, whoa, what happens if — but no, we're still here,” Giolito told Bradford.

In nine MLB seasons with the Washington Nationals (2016), Chicago White Sox (2017-23), Los Angeles Angels (2023), Cleveland Guardians (2023) and Red Sox (2025), Giolito is 71-66 with a 4.30 ERA.

Giolito had an internal brace procedure on his right elbow in March 2024 and did not pitch that season.

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J.P. Hoornstra
J.P. HOORNSTRA

J.P. Hoornstra is an On SI Contributor. A veteran of 20 years of sports coverage for daily newspapers in California, J.P. covered MLB, the Los Angeles Dodgers, and the Los Angeles Angels (occasionally of Anaheim) from 2012-23 for the Southern California News Group. His first book, The 50 Greatest Dodgers Games of All-Time, published in 2015. In 2016, he won an Associated Press Sports Editors award for breaking news coverage. He once recorded a keyboard solo on the same album as two of the original Doors.

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