The Chicago White Sox didn't get a good season from Lucas Giolito in 2022. He wasn't as bad as a "bad pitcher" but he didn't have a good season for his standards at all. The White Sox had a .500 season and Giolito's struggles were a big part of it.
This was surprising because Giolito was a top-ten American League pitcher in 2019, 2020, and 2021. As a result, he deserves the chance to bounce back in 2023. His trade value is as low as it can be right now so there is no point in not giving him that chance. He might reward them a lot.
Giolito doesn't have to be the ace anymore either. Dylan Cease has taken that role on and Lance Lynn with Michael Kopech each have the ability to dominate games as well. They are looking for both Giolito and Mike Clevinger to bounce back this year to form a great overall rotation.
Giolito went on MLB Network this week to speak about a variety of topics. He talked about things like his off-season challenges, how he plans for things to change in 2023, the addition of Andrew Benintendi, and his conversations with Pedro Grifol.
The Chicago White Sox are hoping for big things again from Lucas Giolito.
Lucas Giolito is focused and putting in the work for 2023. 💪
— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) January 21, 2023
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The most interesting thing that he talked about was obviously his off-season and what he plans on having ready for spring training. Obviously, the big weight muscle gain from last year was an issue that threw his mechanics off. That won't be a problem this year.
He also touched on his changeup. He is aware that he has the best changeup in baseball when he is on but he has to get back to that level. His changeup was down in terms of usage last year and he wants to change that going into this year.
The White Sox do have some new additions coming into this year and Giolito seems to approve of these moves and is excited about them. Hopefully, that energy is carried into spring training by everyone.
Lucas Giolito is a very good pitcher with a good attitude about things. He knows last year was hard but instead of feeling sorry for himself, he is just trying to get better. Expect him to return to form this year.