Lucas Giolito was a little bit cold to start the 2021 season. He had a bit of “April arm” that he dealt with but he turned it around quickly. He was the Opening Day starter for the Chicago White Sox and has come to deserve that honor as he is the best pitcher on the staff. He didn’t have the best year as Carlos Rodon and Lance Lynn were a little bit better for most of the season but he is their main guy.
Once Giolito did find his grove, it was hard to find anyone that compared. He finished the season with an ERA of 3.53 and a WHIP of 1.103. He had a record of 11-9 and 201 strikeouts over 178.2 innings. All of this accumulated to Giolito being an outstanding 4.3 WAR player.
Pitchers like him are hard to come by. He is an ace that can give you a good start whenever you need it. 2021 marked the third year in a row where Giolito landed on the Cy Young ballot. He finished in 11th place. We can only hope that he takes it home at some point in his career because he is that good.
Not only is Giolito outstanding at throwing baseballs, but he is also a fantastic leader. Whenever something big happens with the White Sox, he is the guy that faces the media. There is no doubt that he is the face of the pitching staff right now. As the team gets better, Giolito can get better too which is scary for the league.
2021 Final Grade: A
Lucas Giolito gets an A for his season. It would probably be an A+ if he didn’t have his early-season struggles. Once he found his game, he was off to the races. His name appears on the Cy Young Award ballot which tells you everything that you need to know about this year. He prevailed after some people questioned him early in the season.
2022 Expectations:
The Chicago White Sox is going to be an outstanding baseball team in 2022. We don’t know what moves they are about to make which makes things even more interesting. As a result, regardless of the moves made, Lucas Giolito is going to have a fantastic year. The way that the team plays should really help him find his form early because he will have protection in the rotation and run support.
To be honest, Giolito should be aiming to have one of “those” years. A Cy Young Award, ace of a division winner, and game one starter for the playoffs should be on his mind. He is that good and should have those kinds of expectations.