Red Sox pitcher Lucas Giolito makes recruiting pitch for free-agent Max Fried

"I think it’s a good fit. Obviously, I’m a little biased."

If the Red Sox want to play October baseball in 2025, odds are they’ll need to add at least one top-of-the-rotation pitcher to the roster this winter.

Boston already has the framework of a steady starting rotation in place with Tanner Houck, Kutter Crawford, and Brayan Bello all expected back. The return of free-agent signing Lucas Giolito — who missed the entire 2024 season due to elbow surgery — is also a welcome development.

But Giolito is already doing what he can to help out the 2025 Red Sox, with the 30-year-old righty admitting on the “Baseball Isn’t Boring” podcast this week that he’s already made a pitch to his former high-school teammate, Max Fried.

“You think I haven’t already talked to him about it,” Giolito told WEEI’s Rob Bradford when asked about his potential pitch to Fried.

Fried, who played alongside Giolito at Harvard-Westlake High School in California, is set to earn a hefty contract in free agency. The 30-year-old southpaw went 11-10 with the Braves during the 2024 season, posting a 3.25 ERA over 174.1 innings of work.

The two-time All-Star had his best season with Atlanta in 2022, finishing second in NL Cy Young Award voting after going 14-7 with a 2.48 ERA.

“We played high school ball together and we always talked about how cool it would be if we were on the same team in the big leagues – which were legitimate conversations we would have when we were 17,” Giolito said of Fried. “So, this is the shot to make it a reality right here.”

Be it Fried’s age (turns 31 in January) or his lighter workload (one season over 180 innings pitched), there might be some reservations for teams looking to sign Fried to a long-term deal.

But Giolito believes that a pitcher like Fried would be a strong addition to a Red Sox team in desperate need of more difference-makers — especially on the mound.

“Obviously, I think he would fit in great,” Giolito said. “Obviously, I think the need is there. You look at the starting pitcher depth chart and you don’t see a lot of ‘LHP’ and, in my opinion, he’s the best, most consistent starting pitcher. So, I think it’s a good fit. Obviously, I’m a little biased.”

“Here’s the deal. Max is going to have a lot of teams interested in him. Let’s be real,” Gioloto added. “There is going to be a lot of money thrown around. It’s going to be very interesting how that plays out. Do I hope the Red Sox end up being the best fit and the best choice from different angles? Of course. But that’s going to be up to him at the end of the day.”

Conor Ryan is a staff writer covering the Bruins, Celtics, Patriots, and Red Sox for Boston.com, a role he has held since 2023.