One question surrounding the Chicago Cubs going into the 2026 season is their starting pitching. It has been a quiet offseason in terms of adding to the rotation. Shota Imanaga accepted his qualifying offer for one year and $22.025 million.
As far as building out the rotation, the Cubs could use another arm through free agency or a trade. If they go the trade route, the Miami Marlins offer some options with Sandy Alcantara and Edward Cabrera. Aside from Tarik Skubal of the Detroit Tigers, Alcantara and Cabrera are likely the best options to try and pluck from another team.
Free agency has seen the options slowly dwindle, with Dylan Cease going to the Toronto Blue Jays and Michael King returning to the San Diego Padres. Framber Valdez of the Houston Astros is an option, but he might be too expensive. There is one low-risk, high-reward option Chicago has in a former Cy Young candidate looking to bounce back in 2026.
Cubs Linked to Free Agent Pitcher Zac Gallen
One name that is an interesting one who has not signed yet is Arizona Diamondbacks right-hander Zac Gallen. He is two years removed from being a finalist for the National League Cy Young Award in 2023. He backboned Arizona’s run to the World Series that year against the Texas Rangers.
Zachary D. Rymer of Bleacher Report listed eight free agents with a buy-low upside. Gallen was listed, and Rymer linked him to the Cubs, Rangers, and Los Angeles Dodgers.
“Zac Gallen is probably the most obvious buy-low free agent on the market, though there is the complication of how selling him is harder than it ought to be. Yes, he was a finalist for the NL Cy Young Award as recently as 2023. Yet he took a substantial step back in 2024 and just plain wasn’t good in 2025. Most notably, his home run rate effectively doubled as he got taken deep a career-high 31 times,” Rymer wrote.
Ok, so his numbers were not those of a pitcher who would command a lot of interest in free agency after last season. In 33 starts, he went 13-15 with a 4.83 ERA in 192 innings with 175 strikeouts. His WAR dropped to a career-low 1.1. Still, the 30-year-old is someone who can come in and solidify a rotation with a change of scenery.
Cubs Should Look to Buy-Low With Zac Gallen
The options in free agency, aside from Valdez, are mostly going to be considered low-risk, high-reward. In terms of Gallen, it’s just going to be what type of contract he’ll demand. Jim Bowden, of The Athletic, recently predicted a five-year, $135 million contract for Gallen. Granted, Bowden had Gallen signing with the Atlanta Braves, but that isn’t buying low.
However, Rymer sees him as a bounce-back candidate in 2026, something that should make him intriguing to teams like the Cubs after he had a strong second half of the 2025 season.
Chicago needs another rotation arm if it is going to contend in the NL Central with the up-and-coming Cincinnati Reds and Milwaukee Brewers. An established arm like Gallen, who is in line to bounce back next season, is someone they could target for the right price.
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