After White Sox ace Lucas Giolito challenged Twins third baseman Josh Donaldson to “talk shit” to his face, Donaldson indeed made a point to address their beef face-to-face.
The two had a discussion in the parking lot of Guaranteed Rate Field late Tuesday after the White Sox’s 7-6 win against the Twins, Donaldson told reporters Wednesday afternoon. The meeting came after Donaldson rubbed his hands together and appeared to yell, “Hand’s not sticky anymore” after homering off Giolito in the first inning. Amid MLB’s crackdown on pitchers using foreign substances, Giolito took issue with the accusation of previous cheating, calling it a “classless move” from Donaldson and adding, “If you're going to talk shit, talk shit to my face. Don't go across home plate and do all that, just come to me.”
A day later, Donaldson explained what happened when he did initiate a face-to-face meeting with Giolito.
"He said he thought it was annoying,” Donaldson said, according to Vinnie Duber of NBC Sports Chicago. “I said, 'So what? I'm on the opposing team. What do you care about me? I'm in your face, what do you have to say about that?' And he didn't have a response.
“My intention was not to show up Lucas Giolito, but he took it that way … He has a problem with what he said on the field, and I have a problem with what he has to say in the Zoom room. And that's OK. We're not supposed to like each other. He's on another team.”
Donaldson stood by his belief that Giolito was likely among the pitchers previously using sticky substances to gain an advantage by increasing their spin rate.
"If we're going to talk about class, what side are you going to choose?” Donaldson said, according to NBC Sports Chicago. “Are you going to take the side of somebody who's playing the game fair? Or are you going to take the side of someone who probably cheated?”
The AL Central-leading White Sox (46-32) host the Twins (33-44) again at Guaranteed Rate Field on Wednesday evening.