How to become the best pitcher after being the worst
The name Lucas Giolito can tell you two things: a bad and a good one.
First of all, he can make you laugh out loud, quite simply, because Giolito had the worst season for a pitcher in 2018. The White Sox ended the campaign with 118 earned runs, the worst mark in any Major League. He allowed 90 walks, the highest in the American. You can easily see that his earned runs average was just as bleak: 6.13 in 173.1 innings pitched.
However, Giolito may also elicit your admiration, as the Gunner is now one of the best pitchers in the Majors and nothing less than the American League’s pitcher of the month.
A complete questioning
Lucas Giolito is showing us this year that it is possible to turn things around. In 2019, it’s a new and reinvented Lucas who shows up on the mound every game. During the season dead strong, the Californian has completely revised his motion. This hard physical and psychological work makes him one of the best pitchers of the 2019 season so far.
He developed a whole new motion, more compact and athletic. His movements are now much shorter, his weight transfer more powerful and his arm always ready to throw while hiding the ball longer behind him.
His throwing arsenal is now infallible. Its speed-changing bullet has become a formidable weapon. Opposing hitters are averaging just .175 against this one this year. Its rapidity has also gained in speed and efficiency. Its slippery is even more devastating. Talk to Christian Vazquez.
Lucas Giolito, Filthy 85mph Slider (and tail). 😷 pic.twitter.com/6JQgUmSNxt
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) May 3, 2019
An example for young people
At Passion MLB, we often talk about the human side of baseball. Well, Lucas Giolito is a great example of a human player who needs to be promoted. He was able to get up after an atrocious season and face his greatest opponent, himself. He showed that if you are not afraid of yourself you can rise up and become better, and that even if you have reached the top, you can still improve. He shows our young players what a real athlete is.
