Lucas Giolito has elbow injury, won’t be on Red Sox’ Wild Card Series roster vs. Yankees

NEW YORK — For a long stretch this summer, the Red Sox relied on the trio of Garrett Crochet, Brayan Bello and Lucas Giolito to anchor a rotation that had been decimated by injuries. As the postseason starts, Boston will be without one of them.

Giolito has an elbow injury and will not be available for the Wild Card Series, manager Alex Cora announced at Yankee Stadium on Monday. Giolito was the leading candidate to pitch a potential Game 3 if necessary. Crochet and Bello will pitch Games 1 and 2 on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively.

Giolito is in Alabama visiting Dr. Jeffrey Dugas, the orthopedic surgeon who performed the internal bracing procedure that cost Giolito the entirety of 2024. The Red Sox will hope to know more about the severity of the issue in the coming days.

“Lucas is not going to be on the roster,” Cora announced Monday. “He has been battling with his elbow the last few days. Today, he went to see Dr. Dugas. Hopefully, it’s nothing major, but he won’t be ready for this one.”

“It kind of came on fairly gradually,” said chief baseball officer Craig Breslow. “He just felt kind of fatigued and wasn’t recovering quite as well and it didn’t really raise a ton of alarm with the medical staff. We were pretty confident he would be ready (for the postseason). But then, gradually, the symptoms got worse and worse to the point that it obviously became an issue.

“This wasn’t a case where we felt he was pitching through something because we could have flagged it earlier. He just felt like he wasn’t recovering like he was used to, but it’s September and I think that’s probably to be expected. But particularly (Sunday) afternoon, it started to get to a place where we needed to figure out what’s going on.”

Giolito, who returned from a year off to bounce back with a 3.41 ERA in 26 starts for Boston, had an uneven September in which he walked 13 batters in 19 ⅔ innings while demonstrating diminished velocity with his fastball. In his last start on September 23, the 31-year-old threw his fastball an average of 92.1 mph, down more than a tick from his season average of 93.3 mph. In the last week, Giolito has reported soreness. He didn’t pitch on turn Sunday in the regular season finale with the Sox already having clinched a playoff spot.

“I believe he was fighting it,” said Cora. “He was going to throw a bullpen during the week. We had to cut it short. Was he in play for the last game? Probably. He was pushing that way. But after Saturday and Sunday, he didn’t look too good. That’s the reason we sent him to see the doctor. Hopefully, it’s nothing major.”

In addition to the loss to the pitching staff, Breslow focused on the human side of the story.

“You feel for Gio, given all that he been through over the last couple of years,” Breslow said, “and everything he did to put himself in a position to help our team the way that he has all season. So I think that on a personal level, you feel badly for. a guy that did everything that he possibly could to help the team and wants nothing more than to help the team in the postseason.”

Cora has not yet named a starter for Game 3 but young lefties Connelly Early and Kyle Harrison are both candidates after joining the roster down the stretch. The Red Sox will reveal their entire roster for the Wild Card Series on Tuesday before Game 1. The Game 3 starter may depend on how Cora uses his young pitchers out of the bullpen in the first two games.

“We’ll go the first two games, then we’ll decide,” Cora said. “Obviously, we have some kids over there who have started lately. But first thing’s first: Crochet, Bello and if we have to make a decision for Game 3, we’ll go from there.”

One pitcher who is not an option is starter Dustin May, who has been out since early September with neuritis in his right elbow. May is in Fort Myers as he continues his throwing progression and is not an option for the Yankees series. Richard Fitts also remains on the injured list along with Tanner Houck, Kutter Crawford, Hunter Dobbins and Patrick Sandoval, who are out for the season.

Giolito’s latest health setback may have a significant impact on him as he enters free agency. By reaching the 140-inning mark this season, he unlocked a $19 million mutual option that will be declined, allowing him to hit the open market once again. Any recurring elbow issues would potentially scare off some interested teams.

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