Lucas Giolito apparently could have told everyone all along how the Boston Red Sox would handle his contract situation.

The starting pitcher declined the player side of his $19 million mutual for 2026 after a bounce-back campaign in Boston. Following that move, the Red Sox decided not to issue Giolito a one-year, $22 million qualifying offer.

Some uncertainty persisted over whether the Red Sox would extend the qualifying offer, which would have given them a chance to receive a compensatory draft pick if Giolito rejected it and signed with another team. Giolito, however, said on the “Baseball Isn’t Boring” podcast that he wasn’t surprised by Boston’s choice.

“I wasn’t, like, banking on it,” Giolito said. “I was pretty sure I wasn’t gonna get it.”

The decision seemed like a given t

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