Lucas Giolito’s self-awareness is his first step toward Red Sox redemption arc

The first step in solving a problem is recognizing there is one.

Well, give Lucas Giolito credit for that. The one-time All-Star right hander acknowledged what we’ve all known ever since the Red Sox signed him in the first major free agent deal of the Craig Breslow era…

He hasn’t been very good lately. 

“I’m not a fan, at all, of my recent performances,” Giolito said at his introductory Zoom meeting with reporters on Wednesday. “The last couple months of the year for me were like really rough stats wise. A lot of bad starts."

At least the elephant in the room has been identified, and it only took him less than five minutes into the interview to address it. Let’s face it, there’s no sugar coating an 8-15 season and a 4.88 ERA across a career-high 33 starts in 2023 — and that came one season after posting a career-worst 4.90 ERA over 30 starts in 2022.

Oh yeah, and then there were the *41 home runs* he gave up last year… 

“Yeah, it was actually like kind of an astounding number how many home runs I gave up,” he said.

Even through his struggles, though, the 29-year-old saw flashes of his old self. He singled out a start he made in mid-September against the eventual World Series champion Rangers (7 innings, two hits, no runs, one walk, a season-high 12 strikeouts) as evidence that he can return to form with the Red Sox.

 “That was kind of like a key indicator like, ‘Yeah, I still got it.’ Just a matter of bringing it out more often. … I feel like (the Red Sox are) just a great fit for me, what I’m trying to do, get back to the type of pitcher I know I can be.”

But what exactly went wrong, Lucas? And what’s to ensure the third time will be the charm? 

“I’d say the biggest thing is consistency,” he said. “You know, the last couple of months of my (2023) season, you know, I was moving around a lot and I got into some bad funks I’d say — mechanically, mentally. 

“So this offseason I’ve been really getting back to basics when it comes to my work leading up to the next season. Getting my mechanics tightened back up, repeating my delivery, and you know getting prepared to go out and try to throw as many quality innings as possible. That’s truly what I believe is the most important thing to do as a starting pitcher is give your team a ton of innings and a ton of quality innings.” 

It’s not particularly encouraging that a pitcher the Red Sox have just committed to giving nearly $20 million a season to has to essentially go back to square one over the offseason. You’d like to think the pitchers you pay in free agency are, you know, still pretty good at pitching…

But Giolito’s struggles were reflected in his market value. If there even was a bigger or lengthier deal out there to be had, though, Giolito insisted he wasn’t interested and wanted to bet on himself.

He revealed that the Red Sox baseball ops department and coaching staff (namely Andrew Bailey) was aggressive in their pursuit of him in his first-ever go around as a free agent, noting they were “one of it not the first team” to contact him. Forget about those guys like Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Aaron Nola and the like, right? Apparently Breslow wanted him some Lucas Giolito, and he wanted him badly (but hey, given the way it all played out with the latter signing early and the former two joining the already stacked Dodgers, perhaps Breslow was simply being a realist…).

Breslow may have only been bidding against himself, though. In his own words, Giolito admitted that “it wasn’t very many” teams that were lining up to bang down the door and put him in their uniform. 

And so, he settled for the Red Sox’s option-laden offer.

“Just because I’m coming off a down season and the year before that was a down season too, so for me you know committing to like a big longterm deal at a value that I don’t necessarily see myself at or not really having interest from teams in that type of deal, it didn’t really make sense (to sign longterm),” Giolito said. “What makes sense for me is going somewhere where I know I’m going to be comfortable, I know I’m going to get better.” 

Well, the Red Sox might be comfortable with performance that have produced a career 4.43 ERA, but I know for a fact that most fans won’t be. But here’s the good news, Red Sox fans. Unlike some of the team’s others star pitchers in recent years, Giolito actually cares what you think (and isn’t that refreshing?).

“I care deeply about the fanbase. I care deeply about trying to provide the best product possible, and so you’re never gonna see me like slacking off or getting lazy or not caring. I will work my ass off to do everything I can to provide the organization I’m playing for and therefore the fanbase the best version of myself. … I’m here. I’m ready to get to work.”

“I care deeply about trying to provide the best product possible”… well, that makes at least one member of the Red Sox organization who cares about the on-field product (ATTN: John Henry). 

Signing Giolito was a start to putting out a better product, but by no means was it the most important piece of the puzzle. The Red Sox’s only hope to salvage their now laughable promise of a “full throttle” offseason is to bring in another good starting pitcher. Certainly one better than Giolito’s caliber. Whether that’s in free agency or by trade, it has to happen. Otherwise, the Red Sox’s hopes of truly contending in 2024 will all but vanish.

Even Giolito himself expects there will be more to come…

“I think there’s probably more moves to be made, and I don’t really think it’s my place to say. I just got here,” Giolito said with a laugh.

The numbers are what they are, but I like what I’ve heard from Giolito the competitor early on. He is accountable and seems to be eager to turn his career around instead of cashing a check and riding off into the sunset. 

Of course, as we well know, accountability only goes so far if there isn’t forward progress being made. Here’s hoping the career arc of this former star Chicago White Sox hurler ends differently than the last one to wear a Red Sox uniform…