Lucas Giolito vs. Framber Valdez (and more): Weighing the Tigers' remaining options

On Wednesday, the Tigers will finally be able to figure out whether or not they can afford another starting pitcher this year, when they duke it out with Tarik Skubal in front of an arbitration panel.

Detroit has been named alongside a number of mid-tier arms, but they're seemingly refusing to make a move until they find out if they'll have to pay Skubal $32 million.

But Framber Valdez, Lucas Giolito, Chris Bassitt, Nick Martinez, and Jose Quintana are all still out there and have been connected to the Tigers in some capacity. The Tigers are only going to sign one (if they sign one at all), so which one should it be?

Weighing the Tigers' remaining starting pitching options as spring training approaches

Framber Valdez

Pros: Valdez is the best staring pitcher left on the free agent market. He's had almost fully healthy seasons for the last four years and is a two-time All-Star, three-time Cy Young candidate, and two-time MVP votes getter during that stretch. He would be the real No. 2 that the Tigers desperately need, and he's almost certainly looking for a multi-year dear. If the Tigers were amenable, he would be the natural successor as ace if/when Skubal leaves in free agency.

Cons: Being the best on the market means he'll be the most expensive option of anyone on this list, even if his market has plummeted given how little time is left before spring training. And, that ugly, maybe-intentional-but-probably-not cross-up incident with Cesar Salazar in September alludes to some diva tendencies, and the Tigers don't like divas.

Lucas Giolito

Pros: Giolito is an All-Star, three-time Cy Young candidate, and the youngest option on this list. His 2025 season with the Red Sox, though shortened by injury, was promising; his best since 2021. He would be coming to the Tigers with perhaps even less dusting-off needed than former high school teammate Jack Flaherty when he signed with Detroit in 2024. His fastball looked the best it has since 2020, and he could be had on a two-year, $32 million deal.

Cons: His shortened year with the Red Sox was a decent start, but he still hasn't fully bounced back from the awful second-half of his 2023 season. He was looking decent before the White Sox traded him to the Angels at the deadline, and then he posted a 6.89 ERA in Anaheim and was placed on waivers, only to be picked up by the Guardians and posting a 7.04 ERA. His SO/9 plummeted from 10 in 2023 to 7.5 in 2025, which doesn't click with the TIgers' need for more swing-and-miss.

Chris Bassitt

Pros: Bassitt has been a faithful and effective innings-eater for three different teams since 2021. He pitched 200 innings and had an AL-leading 16 wins (out of a league-leading 33 starts) in 2023, his first season with the Blue Jays. As he's gotten older, he's leaned more heavily on his breaking and off-speed stuff, which jives well with the Tigers' pitching philosophy. Again, his strikeout stuff leaves something to be desired, but he's an above-average ground ball pitcher.

Cons: He turns 37 before Opening Day, and the Tigers have a terrible recent track record when it comes to pitchers over 35 (Alex Cobb, Charlie Morton). Bassitt's managed to stay mostly healthy over the last five season, but wouldn't it just be so characteristic of the Tigers to signing an aging veteran only for him to spend half of the season on the IL? Sure, fans are calling for Detroit to re-sign Justin Verlander, but that's a future Hall of Famer. Bassitt's had a respectable career, but he's not of that caliber.

Nick Martinez

Pros: We could probably expect the Tigers to use Martinez in the same way the Padres and Reds did when he returned to MLB after four seasons in Japan. Last year, he made 40 appearances, 26 of which were starts, and he closed two games. He's the perfect swingman — which isn't exactly what the Tigers need, but it is something they would love. He doesn't walk batters and induces a lot of soft contact.

Cons: We sort of alluded to this, but what the Tigers like might not be what the Tigers need. No one on this list, other than Valdez, is really a No. 2, but Martinez would be the furthest away from that. If the Tigers need a swingman, they can turn Troy Melton or Drew Anderson into that guy, depending on how they fare in spring training.

Jose Quintana

Pros: Quintana is the most experienced pitcher on this list and is gunning for a spot in Twitter's Hall of Pretty Good (32.9 career bWAR) when he eventually retires. He's pitched over 170 innings per season for the majority of his career, and managed to do so as recently as 2024 with the Mets, good for a 3.75 ERA. Like Bassitt, he's a breaking ball pitcher, and he managed to do it even better despite being the oldest pitcher on this list.

Cons: Again, we're worried about age here, and there's even more reason to be worried about Quintana than Bassitt after he spent two separate stints on the IL with different injuries. He only managed to pitch 131 2/3 innings for the Brewers in 2025. He won't get a bank-breaking contract, which we're sure is alluring to the Tigers, but a one-year deal doesn't solve anything for the rotation after Skubal, Flaherty, and Casey Mize leave in free agency after 2026, and more years would be very risky.