Garrett Crochet talks season, postseason, tattoos
NEW YORK - The Red Sox are kicking off their postseason with some bad news.
Alex Cora announced during his workout day press conference that Lucas Giolito would not be on the Wild Card roster due to right elbow discomfort. The pitcher spent the day traveling to Alabama to have the ailment checked by Dr. Jeffrey Dugas.
"I think it kind of came on fairly gradually in that it just felt kind of fatigued and wasn’t recovering quite as well and didn’t really raise a ton of alarm with the medical staff," said Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow. "Felt pretty confident he would be ready, but then just kind of gradually, the symptoms got worse and worse to the point that it obviously has become an issue.”
Breslow added, "This wasn’t a case where we felt like he was pitching through something because we could have flagged it earlier. This was more just he felt like he wasn’t recovering the way he was used to . as you said, it’s September, and that’s something to probably be expected. I think yesterday, particularly yesterday afternoon, it got to a place where it seemed like we need to figure out what’s going on here."
The absence of Giolito, who was thought to be in line to pitch Game 3 (if needed), means the Red Sox will presumably be relying on rookie Connelly Early and/or newcomer Kyle Harrison.
Garrett Crochet will pitch Game 1 Tuesday (6:08 p.m. first pitch), with Brayan Bello slated for Game 2.
The Red Sox's plan for the implementation of the available pitchers is still up in the air, with a good chunk of it depending on if there is a Game 3 in the best-of-three Wild Card series.
After missing all of 2024 following internal brace surgery on his right elbow (which was performed by Dr. Dugas), Giolito made 26 starts for the Red Sox this season, totaling an ERA of 3.41. His most recent appearance came last Tuesday in Toronto when he allowed one run over 4 2/3 innings.
Another potential bump in the road for the Red Sox was the illness Alex Bregman has been dealing with over the last few days. The third baseman didn't travel with the team after Sunday's game, showing up Monday in time for the team's workout. He appeared on the field briefly before going back inside.
Cora also announced Jarren Duran would be getting the start in Game 1 against Yankees lefty Max Fried. Duran wasn't in the starting lineup the last time Fried pitched against the Red Sox, with the outfielder having gone 0-for-10 with five strikeouts against the Yanks' ace.