The Red Sox got bounced from the AL Wild Card series by the Yankees, which means it’s time to look ahead to what promises to be a busy offseason.
Once the playoffs wrap up, Boston’s front office will have plenty of roster decisions to make. Several of those involve the pitching staff.
Lucas Giolito emerged as one of their most reliable starters this season, but he wasn’t available for the playoffs due to injury. Now he’s headed to free agency, and the early speculation suggests he won’t be back.
In a recent FanSided piece, writer Katie Manganelli made the case for moving on from Giolito:
“Kutter Crawford and Patrick Sandoval will also be healthy. Still, none of those players can reliably fill the No. 2 spot in the rotation behind Garrett Crochet, and finding a clear No. 2 starter should be Boston’s highest offseason priority. Trade deadline target and 2025 All-Star Joe Ryan could be an option, but Giolito should not be.”
The logic centers around Boston’s farm system depth and their need to target a legitimate No. 2 starter in free agency.
But here’s the thing – Giolito had a pretty impressive bounce-back year. After missing all of 2024, he posted a 3.41 ERA over 145 innings in 26 starts. That’s solid production from a guy who was coming off a lost season.
His September elbow injury might’ve been the difference between the Red Sox advancing and going home early against New York. That’s the kind of impact you don’t easily replace.
The question becomes whether Boston views him as part of the solution or if they’re looking to upgrade across the board. With Garrett Crochet locked in as the ace and several young arms working their way up, Giolito could fill that veteran presence role.
All things considered, it’ll come down to what the market looks like and whether Boston thinks they can do better with their payroll flexibility.
