Lucas Giolito was once seen as one of the Washington Nationals’ brightest prospects. That’s why it was seen as surprising when the franchise dealt him and two other prospects to the Chicago White Sox in exchange for Adam Eaton in December.
Giolito made his major league debut Tuesday — and it wasn’t pretty. He gave up three home runs in a 4-1 loss to the Minnesota Twins.
When dealt, Giolito was ranked the third-best prospect by MLB.com. The Nationals also gave up pitching prospects Reynaldo Lopez and Duane Dunning.
At the time of the trade, Yahoo Sports’ Jeff Passan reported the Nationals “were down on Giolito and everyone knew it.”
Tuesday’s game is no indication of Giolito’s long-term success either way; plenty of pitchers have rough first outings in the majors. He finished the night giving up six hits and had four strikeouts with no walks in six innings.
“A few mistakes got me tonight, trying to go in with the heater and leaving it over middle,” Giolito told reporters after. “Guys up there are going to hit mistakes, and that’s kind of what happened. I feel like I belong. I feel my stuff plays.”
Eaton, meanwhile, has been out since late April with a torn ACL.
• This story is based in part on wire service reports.
• Matthew Paras can be reached at mparas@washingtontimes.com.
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