The Boston Red Sox will commence the regular season without another key member of their starting rotation. Right-hander Lucas Giolito will start the season on the injured list due to a low-grade left hamstring strain, as announced by manager Alex Cora on Thursday. Giolito had to leave his start on Tuesday with hamstring tightness, and an MRI confirmed the strain.
“We’re going to be tested right away,” said Cora about the team’s rotation depth.
Prior to Giolito’s injury, the Red Sox were already set to begin the season without fellow righties Brayan Bello and Kutter Crawford. Bello is dealing with a shoulder issue, while Crawford has a knee problem persisting from the last season. Currently, Boston’s rotation depth chart includes:
- Garrett Crochet (LHP)
- Tanner Houck (RHP)
- Walker Buehler (RHP)
- Brayan Bello (RHP) - set to miss the start of the season with a sore shoulder
- Lucas Giolito (RHP) - set to miss the start due to a hamstring strain
- Kutter Crawford (RHP) - will miss the start of the season with knee soreness
- Patrick Sandoval (LHP) - Expected to miss most of 2025 season after undergoing surgery
- Quinn Priester (RHP)
- Richard Fitts (RHP)
- Josh Winckowski (RHP)
Fortunately, Boston’s top three starters, Crochet, Houck, and Buehler, are all healthy, but the depth behind them has taken considerable damage.
Giolito, who is 30, missed the entirety of the 2024 season after having the internal brace procedure, a targeted alternative to Tommy John surgery, which generally has a shorter recovery time.
Last season, Giolito threw 184 ⅓ innings with a 4.88 ERA while switching from the Chicago White Sox to the Los Angeles Angels to the Cleveland Guardians. The Red Sox signed him to a two-year, $38.5 million contract last winter. Notably, Giolito declined to opt-out of his contract last offseason after missing the entire prior season due to elbow surgery.
Almost every AL East team is confronting serious injuries this spring. The New York Yankees will be without Gerrit Cole, who is recovering from Tommy John surgery, as well as others. The Baltimore Orioles will also miss Kyle Bradish, Grayson Rodriguez, and Andrew Kittredge. The AL East is set to be a challenging season as teams deal with injuries.
