Chicago White Sox shut down Giolito before his final start
When he first heard he was being shut down for the rest of the season, Lucas Giolito felt "bittersweet."
On Friday night, the Chicago White Sox's rookie right-hander was scheduled to make his final start of the season against the Cleveland Indians, the defending American League champions.
"I wanted to take the ball against the Indians," Giolito said. "I want to pitch against the best."
The Sox want the same thing, starting next year and beyond. For now, they think the combined 174 innings Giolito pitched with Class AAA Charlotte and the major leagues is the right amount.
"He's had enough innings," said White Sox pitching coach Don Cooper. "There's nothing left to prove this year. There's nothing really to gain. It couldn't have gone better. He's got his blueprint. You look at all of the games, just about every one of them have been really good."
In 7 starts for the Sox after arriving on Aug. 22, Giolito was 3-3 with a 2.38 ERA. The 23-year-old righty already has his sights set on 2018.
"Go back in the off-season and start my workout program," said Giolito, who will start throwing again in mid-December. "For me, it's get prepared to throw 200 innings. That will be a personal goal for me next season. Just go out there and take the ball every fifth day and pitch as many innings as I can and give the team a chance to win every time out."
Sox lose:
Chris Volstad was on the mound for the White Sox on Tuesday night against the Los Angeles Angels.
It was Volstad's first major-league start since Oct. 2, 2012, when he was with the Cubs. The poor result was no surprise.
In a 9-3 loss at Guaranteed Rate Field, Volstad pitched 5 innings and gave up 6 runs on 6 hits. The Angels hit 3 home runs off the right-hander, including Mike Trout's 3-run shot in the second inning.
Returning to the Sox's lineup after missing two games with a sore left shin, Jose Abreu hit a pair of solo home runs.
Shields shut down:
In addition to Lucas Giolito, veteran right-hander James Shields also is going to miss his final scheduled start of the season.
According to manager Rick Renteria, Shields is dealing with tendinitis in both knees and is going to have PRP (platelet-rich plasma) shots.
Carson Fulmer is scheduled to start Saturday at Cleveland, with Chris Volstad going in Sunday's season finale. The White Sox have not announced a Friday starter, but David Holmberg is the likely option.
After altering his delivery by dropping his arm slot, Shields was much more effective while going 3-1 with a 3.51 ERA in his final 4 starts.
"I'm having the results I want," Shields said after beating the Angels on Monday night. "It's still a work in progress as usual, but it feels pretty good. Every game, I figure some new stuff out with my delivery, and it's been working."