Lucas Giolito left Tuesday’s start after one inning with left hamstring tightness. Manager Alex Cora told the Boston beat that Giolito will head for an MRI on Wednesday (relayed by Ian Browne of MLB.com). The team doesn’t seem overly concerned, but it’s a situation worth monitoring.
Cora confirmed this morning that Brayan Bello will begin the season on the injured list after shoulder soreness delayed his ramp-up. He’ll join Kutter Crawford, who has yet to pitch this spring because of right knee soreness that dates back to last April. Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic writes that the timeline on Crawford remains uncertain. Cora indicated that while Crawford is making incremental progress, he isn’t close to even throwing a live batting practice session.
The Sox are slated for a season-opening top four of Garrett Crochet, Tanner Houck, Walker Buehler and Giolito. Richard Fitts, Quinn Priester and Cooper Criswell are in the mix for the final rotation spot. If Giolito’s hamstring proves problematic, that’d likely press two of Fitts, Priester and Criswell into the starting five. The Sox are also building up non-roster invitee Michael Fulmer as a potential starter.
Giolito is still looking to make his Red Sox debut. He sustained a UCL tear in last year’s Spring Training and required internal brace surgery. Hamstring tightness is obviously less concerning than if Giolito had experienced any kind of renewed elbow discomfort. Still, the team won’t know until the imaging comes back whether there’s a risk of a season-opening IL stint.
Hopefully nothing, and thankfully not the arm
“I’ve pulled my hamstring in my career a few times, and it feels very minor,” Giolito told reporters, per MassLive’s Sean McAdam. “That’s what (the training staff) is saying based on the initial testing. It’s just an annoying little setback, I guess.”
nesn.com/2025/03/lucas-giolito-addresses-exit-from…
Hammies can take months to heal. let’s hope it’s a mild one and will take only weeks to heal
Let’s face it. There has been more injuries this Spring to out of shape baseball players than this 74 year old fan has ever seen in his lifetime!!
These Multi-Millionaire dollar baseball players are already fixed for life money wise.
They have no incentive to go the extra mile for physical fitness!!!
“Old fashioned physical fitness” can literally be better obtained by improving their over-all out physical fitness of building up lung capacity and strengthen their muscles by running, exercising by calisthenics, improving flexibility…. Etc. Etc.
That type of training was thrown out the window!!!
So has the combination of both indoor and outdoor physical training.
At Spring Training —- you don’t see extensive team exercising taking place as you once saw —years ago.
Ironically——- years ago —— people didn’t see the level of potential career ending physical injuries as we are seeing now a days.
2 reasons—- players had something to work for and came into camp, already in playing shape!!
—— they weren’t already financially fixed for life. Whether the played or not!!
The Owners who own the playing rights to the Best of the Best current players have theses players salaries insured.
If the player blows out an arm and their career is over, —- the owners fulfill the players contract and the Insurance Companies reimburse them.
These are sure Different times!!!
“More inuries” than “ever seen”
What? I dont know the numbers but there have been many years with much worse.
Every year has its share of injuries
Kutter gonna cut up some bats with cutters
I think it is more that we have had some injuries on big name players like Cole. Would be curious to know the stats. It does seem like the Sox have more than you would expect, but don’t know that they are breaking records.
I saw Bartolo Colon warm up before a regular season game once. Light throws, backs up, long tosses, Weighted baseball and he already threw 80 warm ups easy, then he goes to the bullpen. It’s like his 1st inning is the 4th inning already and by the 4th inning he was done. This was near the end of his career.
We really need him. I remember at one point in the offseason people were saying we are set for pitching but need the right handed bat. I was afraid this would happen because we have seen it several years now. Maybe we will be lucky and most of these guys will be back soon, but this could become a lost season very quickly if we don’t have pitching. Will try to stay positive.
Giolito is 100% missing 2025. Perfect Red Sox contract.
That’s what happens when you have a carload of money, are financially able to sign quality free agents and, instead, choose to sign rehab pitchers.
Gioloti wasnt rehabbing when he aigned. And exactly which “quality” FA signing are you proud of?
Story? Yoshda? Price ? Hanley? Panda? Dice K? JD Drew?
Red Sox havee a terivle track record of big contract FA signings and should atay away from them,, orher than short-term. Their best teams have always been homegrown woth complimentary pieces added.
But even their homegrown guys are hurting: Bello, Crawford, Devers, last year Casas.
I agree with your sentiment, but it’s been a rough go for both homegrown and acquired.
Four players with small injuries, at this point, isnt bad. Red Sox are probably healthier than 75% of the league right now.
the guy took the ball every 5 days from 2018-2023. at the time he was signed he was the perfect back of the rotation innings-eater. bad luck that his durability streak ended after the signing
AL East is hurting.
Giolito will be fine. But, hey… Do these guys stretch? As a Sox fan, I’m more concerned about Bello. I know they say he’s “just behind” in his ST workouts, but a shoulder is something that can bother him all year.
I think they just crack their knuckles and pitch.
The new Chris Sale for the Red Sox? He’ll win a Cy Young with Atlanta eventually.
This dude has had a whole career based on hype. Boring under skilled pitcher, unlikable personality.
I used to watch him stream mlb the show. Really curious why you would go so far as to call him “unlikable”. He’s probably one of my favorite players personality wise
a whole career based on hype
===============
Inaccurate. If you looked at Giolito’s stats you would see:
2019: 3.41 ERA, 3.43 FIP, 228 Ks in 176.2 IP
2020: 3.48 ERA, 3.19 FIP, 97 Ks in 72.1 IP (shortened season)
2021: 3.53 ERA, 3.79 FIP, 201 Ks in 178.2 IP
2022: 4.90 ERA, 4.06 FIP, 177 Ks in 161.2 IP
His 2023 stats are discussed below.
Can’t wait to see how long his beard is once he’s healthy
It’s a joke! This guy sucked 38 million out of this organization for what? Go out and sign or trade for some healthy players to begin with! 19 million a year could have gone for Tanner Scott!
Thecs: Sox should have kept Sale. They replaced broken Sale with broken ineffective Giolito. But hey, Vaughn Gruesome.
Major – The Sox needed to trade Sale because if he got hurt again, which was the most likely outcome, they get literally nothing from his big extension. A trade allows them to get a prospect back and recoup some value.
That being said, Grissom was an awful return. The Sox farm strength is middle infielders. They should have gotten a decent pitching prospect back, and if ATL wouldn’t have given one up then trade with someone else or include much less money.
Major: Giolito wasn’t broken or ineffective when the Sox got him. He was injured during ST last year. Look up and down this site. You’ll see a plethora of pitchers who are already out and with arm injuries. If the hamstring problem doesn’t keep Gio out long term, I’m pretty sure you’re going to be glad the Sox got him.
Avenger – Giolito did have an era around 7 in the second half of 2023. But he was traded twice and was going through a divorce, so not exactly ideal situations to succeed.
Agreed. Giolito had a 3.79 ERA and 131 Ks over 121 innings in 21 starts in 2023 for the White Sox in 2023. He then got traded and went through a divorce and things went downhill after that in 2023. He then got hurt in 2024 spring training after being one of the most durable pitchers in baseball from 2018 to 2023.
Joemo, all in: I remember that his wife served him with divorce papers the morning of the All-Star game. Gio wasn’t in it but still, right in the middle of the season. You’re right, that couldn’t’t have helped.
Remember when Giolito, Flaherty, Fried weren’t the pitchers they are today? Everything changed in May 2018 when they finally learned how to throw a specific slider. If they knew that slider in high school or before May 2018 they certainly would have thrown it.
The second half ERA did not help with the way he was looked at and now he is going to come across as fragile. I really hope it is minor, because I would love to see him get his opportunity to shine.
This poor guy can’t catch a break. Sheesh.
Lots of Cincy fans were complaining our FO didn’t sign Giolito when he was a free agent, calling them “hand sitters” or cheap. Great non-move.
In hindsight.
What else is there but hindsight to judge whether a signing is good or not? No sugar coating when I say I’m glad we didn’t waste 37M$.
Maybe don’t continue to pitch after you feel a tweak in your hamstring in essentially your first rehab start from TJ? Come on man, pitching through it was a horrible idea.
Could you imagine him leaving the mound after one pitch?
That would’ve been easily the most hilarious highlight of the year so far.
All last year he’s out.., then proclaimed this entire off-season that he’s ready to go and anybody questioning it is ridiculous.
Then after his first pitch of spring training this year, he heads to the locker room. Doesn’t get any better than that.
It wouldn’t have been a good look for sure, but what if he now misses an extended period of time because he tried to push through it? It looks much worse.
Granted we will never know how injured it was in the beginning and if pitching more made it worse, but I think it’s safe to assume pitching afterwards didn’t help his injury.
I hope people have some rituals they do to keep Crochet healthy, because man he’s going to have a ton of pressure to perform and stay healthy this year.
Yes, agreed and I’m sure Lucas is feeling a lot of pressure as well.
He hears the talk about stealing money last year and he better not do it again this year, etc.
I’m sure these guys hate the injury bug and sitting, especially as they start to make more money when they’re older.
How are so many Sox players this out of shape when they get to spring training every year? The season starts in a couple weeks….
Woah. Sox, Yanks and Os all experiencing varying degrees of new SP woes. Not Tampa Bay and, outside of Manoah, nor the Jays. Look out!
Just because a few teams in a division have injuries doesn’t make the other teams any better. If the Royals, Cleveland and Twins had a bunch of guys hurt would you be talking up the White Sox? The Jays have underperformed for years and the Rays are bringing a bunch of rehabbing starters into a minor league park. Those facts don’t change with injuries on the part of their divisional opponents.
Agree to disagree Draker. Os didn’t have a TOR in 2023 and won 101 games. In 24 they had a TOR and won 91. The difference. The 23 Os were remarkably healthy and the 24 Os were not. Injuries, especially to the rotation, make a difference.
TBF Tampa just throws their pitchers out there until their arms fall off. They usually get injured right after the leave the team. If the arm still works in Tampa, they’re in the rotation.
That’s a valid point BCBurner. That said; it’s a new year. Hopefully, history doesn’t repeat itself for TB. Cheers!
it would be cruel but extremely funny if they signed him to that contract just for him to pitch 0 innings
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Looks like Lucas Giolito is taking classes at the Anthony Rendon School of Health.
Goose: At least Giolito doesn’t hate baseball.
Goose Gossage wearing a Wilson Glove signing a Jim Spencer Bat on bat day Yankee Stadium and then I saw him years later when he wasn’t the same goose give up a homer to Pat Kelly I knew his goose was cooked cause that would have never happened in a million years.
Goose has damaged his relationships and he has important insights to share. However does he know how to teach the slider, not the slider he knew and threw, a pitch every pitcher much learn?
@Goose & @Avenger
Rendon doesn’t hate baseball. he just prefers to think about other things other than what he’s paid to do. much like the rest of us. lol.
he may not be the hero we want, but he’s the hero we need.
85 wins to win the AL East
@Moot
you’re not kidding. seems that whichever team can roster a starting rotation that does NOT include position players will win the AL East.
Great signing will be out for 2 straight years probabl
How many innings has he thrown for the season under his new contract?
0.