The highly anticipated Boston Red Sox debut of right-handed pitcher is almost here, and it’s been a long time in the making.
Giolito signed a two-year, $38.5 million contract with the Red Sox during the offseason, marking the team’s biggest acquisition. The 2019 All-Star was expected to take on a leadership role in Boston’s starting rotation, but his plans were derailed when he suffered a partial tear in his right UCL during spring training — an injury that ultimately ended his season before it could even begin.
Since then, Giolito has been working diligently to make his return and was initially expected to be ready by the start of the season. However, he encountered another setback when he experienced tightness in his left hamstring. With a rehab start scheduled for either Friday or Saturday night, Red Sox manager Alex Cora has outlined the next steps for the 30-year-old pitcher’s recovery.
“The plan is for him to rejoin us next week,” Cora said Tuesday at Fenway Park, per MassLive’s Christopher Smith.
Boston was without Giolito, Kutter Crawford and Brayan Bello — two of its key starting pitchers — to begin the season, but the rest of the rotation has held the fort down. Sean Newcomb and Richard Fitts, both of whom entered spring training without a definite role, have given the Red Sox quality innings from the mound. The bullpen has converted eight saves, thus far, which ranks second in the American League, and the offense has shown flashes despite undergoing a few early-season skids.
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