Motivated Giolito looks to finish rough '22 on high note originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
Lucas Giolito pushed back when asked how surprising or shocking it is that the White Sox are in their current position so late in the season.
“I wouldn't say it's surprising or shocking,” Giolito said Friday. “We've had a whole season of not putting things together. Tonight, another tough loss late.”
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The White Sox are all but eliminated from postseason contention after Friday’s 5-3 loss to the Tigers. Their elimination number in the wild card race is six; the Guardians’ magic number to clinch the AL Central is three.
But that doesn’t mean, once they are officially eliminated, they have nothing to play for over the final 10 days of the season.
“We've got a lot of motivation, at least for myself,” Giolito said. “I'll speak for myself. A lot of motivation for these last two starts and then an important offseason before next season."
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As far as an important winter goes, that’s true on both a team level for the White Sox and individually for Giolito after a disappointing 2022 campaign.
Individually, Giolito — one of the top starting pitchers in the American League the past few seasons — entered Friday with a 5.07 ERA in 27 starts this season, after posting a 3.47 ERA in 72 starts from 2019-21.
He got off to a poor start against the Tigers, who pounced on him for two runs in the first inning and added another in the second. After Miguel Cabrera led off the third inning with a single, Giolito made an adjustment.
He retired 11 of the next 13 batters he faced to finish the outing.
“There’s been a lot in-game and out-of-game adjustments all year, and a lot of them did not work very well,” Giolito said. “But this one, it was good. I felt like I got into a nice groove.
“I'm excited for my next outing.”
Giolito said the adjustment is hard to explain but it was “almost like really committing to staying on my backside”
“Almost like leaning back, but it's not what I'm actually doing,” he added. “It’s more of a feeling. I felt much more consistent after that.”
So consistent, in fact, he wanted to go back out for a seventh inning, acting manager Miguel Cairo said. His pitch count was only 90 through six frames.
“I was like, ‘No, no, no, no, no, no.’ He pitched really well,” Cairo said. “I wanted him to leave with confidence.
"He pitched really well and gave us a chance to be in the game. It was excellent.”
Giolito’s ERA stands at 5.05 after Friday, and he’s going to finish with his worst mark in that category since 2018.
But he feels like he’s moving in the right direction, and the numbers back it up. Through four September outings, Giolito has tossed two quality starts and holds a 3.74 ERA, 21 2/3 innings.
“It’s been a rough year for us, it’s been a rough year for me, obviously,” Giolito said, “but just try to finish it on a good note.”
He has a few more outings to keep moving in the right direction entering the offseason and 2023 — his final year of club control.
Said Giolito: "Yeah, I mean build off of the good adjustment today and try to get a nice little groove going, finish strong and have something to be proud of on the back end.
"Go into the offseason, focus up and really get after it.”
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