Zac Gallen on impending free agency: ‘To say I’m not thinking about it would be a lie’

Zac Gallen is approaching his first dose of MLB free agency, and the Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher said it’s definitely been on his mind as spring training has begun.

Gallen told Arizona Sports’ Burns & Gambo on Monday it would be a disservice to himself to not be conscious of it. However, going too far in that direction and strictly thinking of himself as an impending free agent would also be a disservice, he said.

“I think acknowledging that it’s there, acknowledging that it’s a thing and understanding that this is what happens when you get to this point in your career, I think is the best way, I feel, to go about it,” Gallen said. “Because either way you’re going to lock yourself in and just embrace it. It’s like, I just have to go out, give my team a chance to win, be healthy and compete and the rest takes care of itself.”

He said his approach on the mound takes over when he steps on the field. When Gallen was pitching on Monday for the first time in a game this spring, he was thinking more about pitch placement than the cloud of free agency hanging over the season.

Zac Gallen only went one inning and threw 15 pitches today.

1.0 IP, 1 ER, 1 H, 2 Ks

Blake Walston in out of the bullpen

— Alex Weiner (@alexjweiner) February 24, 2025

“And I think that’s just the way I’ve always been about anything,” Gallen said. “As a kid, like anything that’s happened, you fail a test, like you’re going out in compete mode. You’re in a different space, so yeah, I’m fortunate in that.

“To say I’m not thinking about it would be a lie, but I’m embracing it.”

How much will Zac Gallen make in 2025?

The Diamondbacks and Gallen’s representation settled to avoid arbitration at $13.5 million in the offseason, slightly under his projected settlement number of $14.1 million, according to MLB Trade Rumors.

The number will bring him to $47 million in career earnings before he hits unrestricted free agency for the first time, per Spotrac.

Scott Boras, Gallen’s agent, has become notorious for not allowing his clients to sign extensions, preferring to see what can be had on the open market. He also represents fellow D-backs star pitcher — and marquee offseason acquisition — Corbin Burnes.

Boras previously represented Jordan Montgomery and “kind of butchered” the process that brought the pitcher to Arizona last offseason, Montgomery later said after parting ways with the agent.

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