With Saturday marking the end of the World Series, teams can officially start negotiating with their free agents. The biggest of these names for the Diamondbacks is Zac Gallen, who had a heartfelt end to the season after his seventh year in the Valley.
ESPN’s David Schoenfield put Arizona as the best location for Gallen in 2026 on his list of best fits for the top 13 free agents.
Gallen had a rough first half of the year, which is part of why he remained on the team after the MLB trade deadline despite being on an expiring contract. He did turn it around in the second half, but his season ERA (4.83) was still the worst of his career by more than half a run (4.30 in 2021).
Gallen’s home run rate nearly doubled from 0.8 per nine innings in 2024 to 1.5 in 2025, and his strikeout rate plummeted to a career-low 21.5%, a notable five-percentage-points decline from his career rate entering the season. He did pitch better the final two months with a 3.32 ERA.
Over the past four seasons, Gallen has been a workhorse for the D-backs. He’s made at least 28 starts every year since 2021 and pitched 192 innings last season.
After using 42 pitchers in 2025 and with a bullpen full of question marks for 2026, consistency is something Arizona will value in starting pitchers this offseason.
If the Diamondbacks want to try and bring Gallen back on a qualifying offer, they have until Thursday to do so. Gallen would then have until Nov. 18 to accept or reject the offer.
The other possible fit that Schoenfield listed as an option for Gallen was the Angels, who have a history of signing players to shorter term deals. At only 30 years old on opening day, Gallen could get reasonable money in Anaheim before trying the market again before his age 32 or 33 season.
Their recent free agent signings have been more of the third-tier type, but they have room in the payroll and two pitchers from their 2025 rotation hitting free agency in Tyler Anderson and Kyle Hendricks. They signed Yusei Kikuchi to a three-year, $63-million deal last offseason and might do something similar this offseason with a starter like Gallen.
