Zac Gallen Makes Official Decision on Qualifying Offer

Arizona offered Gallen the QO on November 6, holding up their end of the expectations. Gallen must now go through the free agent process, and the D-backs will have to either negotiate a deal with him or find other avenues to refill their depleted starting rotation.

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Arizona Diamondbacks Zac Gallen Rejects Qualifying Offer

Gallen's market should be relatively robust, although his career-worst 4.83 ERA in the 2025 season may have lowered that stock by a significant amount.

There was, for a time, uncertainty as to whether or not Arizona would even want to extend the Qualifying Offer, but a strong finish to his season made doing so a low-risk move for the D-backs.

Since Gallen has officially turned down the QO, the D-backs can now stand to benefit if he signs elsewhere.

If the righty, alongside notorious agent Scott Boras, signs for more than $50 million this offseason, Arizona will receive draft compensation in the form of a compensation pick that closely follows the first round of the 2026 MLB Draft.

It was a tough final year for Gallen and the D-backs. He struggled for the vast majority of the season, and only began to look like his previous ace-caliber self in the final weeks.

"I know the last two years didn't go the way we wanted it to. This year didn't go the way I envisioned for myself," Gallen said after his final start of the year in San Diego.

"But every fifth day I put the uniform on, It was an honor. I was proud to put the uniform on," he said.

Regardless of how his last season went, Gallen had been a stalwart of Arizona's rotation, leading the charge back into relevance and an eventual pennant in the 2023 season.

Though his numbers began to decline following the 2023 All-Star Game, Gallen was an all-time Diamondback in parts of seven years in Arizona.

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"I love Zac Gallen, and I told him that," manager Torey Lovullo said. "I don't know where the journey goes for him. ... At the end of the day, he did everything he could in the Valley to help bring us a World Championship."

It's not completely impossible that Gallen will work out a deal to return, but it does seem exceptionally unlikely, with a payroll decrease looming for GM Mike Hazen.

The D-backs will have a tall task in front of them this offseason. They'll have to fill two top-end rotation slots, add two leverage relievers and still find space to bring in a first baseman, power outfielder and backup catcher.

The first major domino of Arizona's offseason was Gallen, and that storyline has been resolved.

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