The Boston Red Sox entered the playoffs with a surprise injury, as starter Lucas Giolito is dealing with an elbow issue and won’t be available against the Yankees.
Giolito likely would have started a potential Game 3 in the best-of-three Wild Card series in the Bronx, but manager Alex Cora said the right-hander went to see orthopedic surgeon Dr. Jeffrey Dugas.
“I believe he was fighting it,” Cora said. “He was going to throw a bullpen during the week, and we had to cut it short. Was he in play for the last game? Probably he was pushing that way, but after Saturday, Sunday, he didn’t look too good.”
Giolito, 31, went 10-4 with a 3.41 ERA over 26 starts this season, his first since undergoing Tommy John surgery that kept him out for the entire 2024 campaign.
Dugas, who is based in Birmingham, Ala., performed Giolito’s elbow surgery last year.
“Hopefully it’s nothing major,” Cora said of Giolito’s current elbow concern.
Cora did not commit to a Game 3 starter, saying the Red Sox would make a decision after left-handed ace Garrett Crochet pitched in Game 1 and right-hander Brayan Bello went in Game 2.
The candidates for a winner-take-all Game 3 on Thursday would include rookie left-hander Connelly Early and fellow lefty Kyle Harrison, neither of whom has ever pitched in a playoff game.
“We have some kids that started this week, and we’ll see how the first two games go,” Cora said. “Then we’ll decide, if needed, for Game 3.”
Whomever the Red Sox choose will be matched up against flame-throwing Yankees rookie Cam Schlittler, who is set to start Game 3 in his postseason debut.
The 23-year-old Early, whom MLB Pipeline ranks as the Red Sox’s No. 6 prospect, made his MLB debut on Sept. 9 and went 1-2 with a 2.33 ERA and 29 strikeouts in 19.1 innings over four starts.
Harrison, 24, is a three-year MLB veteran, but he spent much of the season at Triple-A Worcester after being acquired by the Red Sox in the blockbuster trade that sent slugger Rafael Devers to the San Francisco Giants in June.
Boston called Harrison up on Sept. 10, and he pitched to a 3.00 ERA over three appearances, including two starts.
Overall, Harrison went 1-1 with a 4.04 ERA in 11 appearances, including six starts, in the majors with the Giants and Red Sox this year.
Neither Early nor Harrison faced the Yankees this season, though either one would likely be met with a different lineup than the right-handed Giolito would have been.
The Yankees batted .257 with a .797 OPS against left-handers during the regular season, compared to a .248 average and a .783 OPS vs. right-handers.
With the lefty Crochet on the mound for Tuesday night’s series opener, the Yankees decided to start righty-swinging Paul Goldschmidt at first base over the lefty-hitting Ben Rice. Aaron Judge batted .341 with a 1.279 OPS against left-handers this season, while Giancarlo Stanton was also slightly better against lefties, hitting .277 with a .951 OPS.
Giolito, who was high school teammates with Max Fried at Harvard-Westlake in Los Angeles, went 0-1 with a 3.48 ERA in two starts against the Yankees this year. He has a 3.97 ERA in two playoff starts in his career.
“We’re all thinking about Lucas,” Crochet said. “There’s never a good time for it, but this is a tough time for it. It’s a big blow. He’s a great arm, and I think that he strikes fear in opposing lineups. We’ll be missing him.”
