NEW YORK — Red Sox starter Lucas Giolito is dealing with right elbow discomfort and won’t be part of the roster for the Wild Card Series against the Yankees.
The righthander was not with the team at Monday’s workout in Yankee Stadium, instead traveling to Alabama to see Dr. Jeffrey Dugas, the orthopedist who performed an internal brace procedure on the pitcher’s right elbow in the spring of 2024.
“He’s been battling with his elbow the last few days,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “Hopefully it’s nothing major, but he won’t be ready for this one.”
Giolito had been pitching with reduced velocity in recent outings. Was he dealing with the soreness during that stretch?
“I believe so,” said Cora. “I believe he was fighting it.”
Giolito, who went 10-4 with a 3.41 ERA in 145 innings this year, was nonetheless pushing to be available for the series. But Cora said Giolito had to cut short a bullpen session last week, and seemed to get worse as the week progressed.
“He didn’t look too good, especially [Sunday]. That’s the reason we sent him to see the doctor,” said Cora.
It remains to be seen if Giolito would be available in any subsequent rounds should the Red Sox advance. For immediately, they have Garrett Crochet lined up as the Game 1 starter and Brayan Bello for Game 2. Should the best-of-three series continue to Game 3, Cora said options such as lefthanders Connelly Early and Kyle Harrison could be in play.
“We’ll go the first two games, and then we’ll decide,” Cora said. “Obviously, we’ve got some kids over there that, they have started lately. But first things first, Crochet and Bello, and if we have to make a decision for Game 3, we’ll go from there.”
Still, the Red Sox expressed dismay that after Giolito being a constant this season — particularly over a stretch between mid-June and mid-September when he was one of the most effective starters in baseball — he will be unavailable.
“We’re all thinking about Lucas,” said Crochet. “There’s never a good time for it, but this is a tough time for it. It’s a big blow. He’s a great arm. I think that he strikes fear in opposing lineups. We’ll be missing him. He’ll be in the dugout with us. He’s a great teammate and a guy that has a lot of experience. I think that his mind will lend us a helping hand, but we’ll be missing him, for sure.”
Alex Speier can be reached at alex.speier@globe.com. Follow him @alexspeier.
About the Author
