Red Sox starter Lucas Giolito may miss 2024 season after tests show damaged elbow: reports

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The Boston Red Sox got bad injury news with one of their free agent acquisitions on Tuesday. 

Veteran starter Lucas Giolito had imaging done on his elbow, and initial tests show he has a partially torn ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) and a flexor strain that could require surgery, per ESPN. 

If surgery is the call for Giolito, the Red Sox’s expected Opening Day starter, he could sit out the entire 2024 season. 

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Lucas Giolito of the Boston Red Sox delivers during a Spring Training Grapefruit League game against the Minnesota Twins on Feb. 23, 2024, at jetBlue Park at Fenway South in Fort Myers, Florida. (Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Giolito signed a two-year pact with the Red Sox worth $38.5 million, which made up for most of Boston’s conservative approach in free agency despite saying otherwise at the onset. 

The Sox also signed reliever Liam Hendriks, who is expected to miss most of the season after undergoing Tommy John surgery. There’s a chance he misses the entire season as well. Boston also brought in right-hander Cooper Criswell, while trading for outfielder Tyler O’Neil. 

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After trading Chris Sale to the Atlanta Braves, the Sox knew they needed another veteran starter that could be at the top of their rotation. Giolito was the man to replace him, and after putting together at least 160 innings in the past three seasons, it was a good signing. 

However, Red Sox fans wanted to see more out of the organization, especially in the pitching department with the likes of Blake Snell and Jordan