Giolito throws another gem in White Sox's 6-2 win over Tampa Bay
After striking out the side in the seventh inning, there was no reason for Lucas Giolito to come back out for the eighth.
The rookie right-hander's pitch count already stood at 103, and the Chicago White Sox had a comfortable 5-1 lead over the Tampa Bay Rays at the time.
Still, the thought of giving Giolito one more inning did flash across manager Rick Renteria's mind.
“Was I tempted? Yes,” Renteria said. “Was I going to? No.”
It was the right decision — on every level — but the more you watch Giolito pitch, the more you want to see.
In the Sox's 6-2 win over the Rays Sunday afternoon at Guaranteed Rate Field, Giolito delivered his second straight masterful outing.
“I threw a lot of changeups,” the 23-year-old starting pitcher said. “Just commanding the fastball from the get-go, being able to throw it low and up in the zone. Just having that good rhythm with Smitty (catcher Kevan Smith) back there. I probably only shook him off once or twice. Just throwing good pitches in good situations and being able to stay ahead for the most part.”
After pitching 7 shutout innings against the Tigers in his previous start while picking up his first major-league win, Giolito went the same distance against Tampa Bay and allowed 1 run on 3 hits to go with 10 strikeouts.
“His changeup really, really played well today for him,” Rays manager Kevin Cash said. “He was able to throw that at will. Then he had the fastball to complement it. The way he worked north and south on our hitters is the challenging part.
“I don't think it was a surprise. We knew he was going to be able to get outs at the top of the zone. That's kind of what he likes to do and he went and did it to us.”
Adding the high fastball has fueled Giolito's recent rise with the White Sox.
“It's really important,” Giolito said. “We call it the higher-than-high fastball. It's a super important pitch, and I really didn't realize that until probably late last year and early this year, and I really started working on that more.
“When you can throw a good fastball with life up in the zone, you can generate swings and misses on it, weak contact, and then also set up for the changeup, which kind of comes out of the same slot but takes a dive down, as well as the curveball and slider, which have that vertical break as well.”
If it sounds like Giolito has it all figured out, don't be completely fooled. The 6-foot-6 trade acquisition from the Washington Nationals only has 41⅓ major-league innings under his belt and still has plenty of room for growth.
With that being said, the Sox have eyes and they know what they've seen over Giolito's last two starts.
“He looked just as composed as he did in his last outing,” Renteria said after Sunday's win. “It's like anything, as you continue to trust the stuff that you have and you're able to command it and you're seeing that you're getting big-league hitters out, good big-league hitters, I think it's just a matter of continuing to maintain his approach and the consistency with which he's delivering the pitch to the plate.
“And now it's just time. Time will start to tell us who he is or isn't. Right now, thankfully, it's pretty good for him.”
Scouting report
White Sox vs. Cleveland Indians at Guaranteed Rate Field
TV: WGN Monday and Thursday; Comcast SportsNet Plus Tuesday; Comcast SportsNet Wednesday
Radio: WLS 890-AM
Pitching matchups: The Sox's James Shields (2-5) vs. Trevor Bauer (14-8) Monday at 1:10 p.m.; David Holmberg (2-3) vs. Danny Salazar (5-6) Tuesday at 7:10 p.m.; Reynaldo Lopez (0-2) vs. Carlos Carrasco (13-6) Wednesday at 7:10 p.m.; Carlos Rodon (2-5) vs. Corey Kluber (14-4) Thursday at 7:10 p.m.
At a glance: The Indians are on a roll, and the defending American League champions have won 11 in a row. The White Sox are 5-7 vs. Cleveland this season. The Sox have won 11 of their last 17 at home. Jose Abreu is batting .384 with 8 home runs and 14 RBI over his last 20 games. Kluber leads the AL with a 2.56 ERA and is tied for second with 14 wins.
Next: San Francisco Giants at Guaranteed Rate Field, Friday-Sunday
— Scot Gregor