While Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow kept insisting right before the deadline that the 2025 “aggressive” Sox would be adding, the Red Sox did not seem to make as big of a splash as Breslow led many to believe. However, the first series post-deadline, Breslow, Cora, and the team silenced many of the naysayers when the franchise won its first series sweep of the Houston Astros since 2013. The little movements the team did make, however, were to bolster the team’s pitching depth, which was needed, despite some stars truly holding their own alongside ace Garret Crochet. With the additions of Dustin May and Steven Matz, Breslow’s sentiments from about a week before looking for “impact starting pitching” were echoing with no clear result of blatant improvement, but when looking at the moves that the front office made, it’s clear that they believe in the men who make up the current roster, especially the pitchers who have risen to the challenge of being exactly what the organization needs. While right before Thursday’s deadline, there were rumors linking the Sox to one of Minnesota’s best starters, Joe Ryan, the deal fell through, with the acquisition of May being the only addition for the starting rotation, with a 4.85 ERA and a 6-7 record this season, his numbers don’t scream “number two.” Many assumed that with the hypothetical pick-up of Ryan, the Sox would finally have a “big league” rotation, with Crochet as the team’s number one, followed by Ryan, Giolito, Bello, and Walker Buehler, rounding out Andrew Bailey’s starters. Once 6 pm on the 31st hit, and no other moves were made after Dustin May, it was clear that Craig Breslow was ready to promote from within, as a clear number two has emerged under many people’s radar.

Lucas Giolito spoke after throwing 8.0 in a sweep over the Houston Astros

🎙️ “No matter how the Trade Deadline ended up, we know we’re a good baseball team that can win a lot of games.” pic.twitter.com/qs2vUUCdZg

— NESN (@NESN) August 3, 2025

Enter Lucas Giolito. A former star of the White Sox organization was looking to make a name for himself after a few rough seasons while searching for a new team to call home after his tenure in Chicago. At the beginning of January 2024, many anticipated Giolito’s debut with his new pair of sox; however, due to an injury during his first Spring Training in Ft Myers, he didn’t make his debut with Boston until April of this year. After an elite debut with his new club, he shook off a little rust in May and has been elite since the calendar hit June, most recently in today’s start against the Astros, where he threw eight innings and only gave up three hits and one run. His worst start came at the very beginning of June when he gave up seven earned runs; however, since then, Giolito’s dominance has been unmatched. After that seven-run start on June 4th, Giolito delivered six consecutive quality starts, boasting a remarkable 0.70 ERA and allowing only three earned runs over 38.2 innings; he additionally recorded a 0.88 WHIP during this period. Even after a downtick in his numbers at the end of July, he’s clearly gotten back into a groove with today’s quality start to start the month of August.

Since July 10th, Giolito has been right in step with Crochet, a current AL Cy Young candidate. Crochet’s stat line currently is a record of 6-0, with a 2.03 ERA, a 1.13 WHIP, and a 30.5% K rate, and Gio, as the team’s number two, looks pretty similar. Within the same time frame, Giolito has had a 6-1 record, also with a 2.03 ERA, a 0.95 WHIP, and a 23.4% K rate. Comparing his numbers this season to Joe Ryan’s, it’s evident that Ryan, who hasn’t had to endure as much injury as Giolito, has the better numbers, but not by much. While Ryan makes a solid case as a team’s number two, with Giolito pitching as well as he has, the potential overpay for a pitcher of Ryan’s talent wasn’t worth the risk, with a lot of the players who would’ve solidified the deal for the right-hander being key components to the team’s offense. With the Twins having sold almost their entire big league roster, it’s clear they’re looking to rebuild, and Breslow and co. can wait until the offseason to make a deal for Ryan, if they still feel as though he could or would fit into the pitching staff.

BROOMS!

What a day for Lucas Giolito 👏 pic.twitter.com/ruSLBh31la

— Section 10 Podcast (@Section10Pod) August 3, 2025

Regardless of whether or not the Sox make a move for someone in the offseason, Giolito’s talent on the hill this season is undeniable. As the thirty-one-year-old righty continues to make a case for AL Comeback Player of the Year, he continues to be a bright spot every fifth day, providing fans with a sense of ease when he steps on the mound. His next scheduled start is next Saturday, August 9th, when the Red Sox travel out west for a series against one of the goliaths that make up the NL West, the San Diego Padres. Hopefully, if all four of his pitches seem to work the way he’s been throwing them as of late, he’ll rack up another win as the Red Sox chase down the first-place spot of the AL East.