After bulking up “backfired”, a leaner Lucas Giolito looks to regain All-Star form

GLENDALE, Ariz. — A much leaner Lucas Giolito arrived at Camelback Ranch this spring training, down more than 30 pounds from where he started last season, with a focus on getting back to the most athletic version of himself.

“Last year I bulked up and got really big, strong and I thought it would help for durability and it kind of back fired from day one,” Giolito said. “Opening Day I ended up hurting myself with like a weird ab injury. So, this offseason I had a very regimented program which was better for me. Had more focus, had more people in my circle directing me, guiding me. Obviously it was very beneficial communicating with Ethan [Katz] and [Goldy] and the training staff rather than what happened last offseason.”

A bulked-up Giolito came into last spring at 280 pounds, and it led to a bigger ERA and his worst season since 2018. His struggles were emblematic of the team’s as a whole. 

“I mean it was failure,” Giolito said. “Obviously, it was disappointing, but I think a lot of us took it and turned it into fuel for offseason work.”

The free agent to be says a new voice was needed in the clubhouse and he’s encouraged by what Pedro Grifol has brought to the team. 

“I’m very excited about the camp he’s running so far,” Giolito said about his first-year manager. “The way we are moving station-to-station, the focus of work we are getting. I think there’s going to be a huge emphasis on just getting our identity set as a team, just getting us on the same page and moving in the same direction.”