MLB: The Show Players League — Welcome to the playoffs, Lucas Giolito!
For the final game of the regular season, Lucas Giolito saw himself on TV for the third time during the MLB: The Show Players League. Holding a 1-1 record in such events, he was looking to go 2-1 and stamp his spot in the playoffs.
Before Lucas' night even began, Tommy Kahnle was at home against Lance McCullers Jr. As noted previously, if Kahnle lost, Giolito would be in the playoffs regardless of the outcome of Gio's own game. After earning an early 2-0 lead in the first, McCullers Jr. was able to hang on and win!
With Kahnle's loss, Giolito earned a spot in the playoffs! Whether he would sit in the sixth or eighth seed would be determined by the White Sox's final game.
Game 29: Chicago White Sox at Cincinnati / Miami Reds
With Giolito holding a 10-3 road record, the odds were in his favor as he went on to face Amir Garrett and the virtual Reds in Cincinnati. Instead of playing the game at Great American Ball Park, Garrett opted to play at Marlins Park in Miami. Interesting choice, but he wasn't going to throw Lucas off his game so quickly; the virtual private plane showed up in the right city..
For his third televised game and second of his last three games, Lucas rocked his 2019 Players' Weekend jersey; the last time he wore it, he beat Hunter Pence and the virtual San Francisco Giants.
Giolito came ready to play, because virtual Tim Anderson and Yoán Moncada went back-to-back with home runs to open the game! With a quick 2-0 lead, Lucas was able to shake away the jitters and just have fun. Later in the inning, Yasmani Grandal gapped a single (curse that 6 speed!) and Eloy Jiménez walked to put two runners on base. For the third time in the inning, Lucas hit a long ball: Nomar Mazara raked a three-run shot. All nine batters stood in the batter's box during the top of the first, and with a 5-0 lead, Lucas clearly had come to play, and to win.
Dallas Keuchel, the established MLB: The Show Players League GOAT, pitched a 1-2-3 first inning.
Quote of the night from Lucas, on Kid Keuchy: "We're trying to get him a virtual Cy Young ... and the Gold Glove,"
Lucas was only able to grab one run in the second, but it came via the fourth home run of the night — José Abreu gave the virtual White Sox a 6-0 lead.
For the bottom of the second inning, Keuchel did give up a run, but that was all the damage done.
Because the top of the third inning was not aired, Giolito evidently did not score. With a 6-1 lead in the bottom of the third, Keuchel put two runners on base, so Steve Cishek came into the game. Two runs scored to bring the game close, at 6-3, but Cishek also recorded two outs. Aaron Bummer was tasked for the final out, and he got the job done, as per usual.
With that incredible win to close out the regular season of the Players League, Lucas Giolito improved to 19-10 overall, 11-3 on the road, 2-1 on TV, and of course, 1-0 on the night.
Afterthoughts
Lucas Giolito did it — he secured a playoff berth! As he settles into the sixth seed, his stellar road record should come in handy.
The White Sox are set to face the third seed, Bo Bichette and the virtual Toronto Blue Jays, a team Lucas faced very early in this competition. Giolito handed Bichette his first loss of the tournament; let's see Lucas hand him a few more losses this weekend.
The left side of the bracket (Quarterfinals A and B) will be played this Friday, May 1 on FS1 at 9 p.m. CT. Lucas, on the right side of the bracket (Quarterfinals C and D), will play his first playoff games on Saturday, May 2. These games will be aired on ESPN2 at 2 p.m. CT.
The quarterfinals are a best-of-three format, so if Lucas grabs his two wins during the afternoon, he will play in the semifinals (best-of-three format) right after his games finish. Semifinals A (left side of the bracket) will be played on FS1 at 7 p.m. CT. Because of the quick turnaround, the games could be aired live, but I am predicting they will be pre-recorded today and tomorrow.
Although virtual, it is exciting to see Giolito and the White Sox in the playoffs! This competition has brought a lot of thrill and enjoyment, and I'm sure it will get even better in the playoffs during the weekend.
Win or lose, you can find a recap article of Lucas' results right here on South Side Hit Pen at Sports Illustrated. Before the game, I will host a discussion on the aforementioned SI; of course, I will live-tweet all of Lucas' games as well.
Good luck, Lucas! I'm proud of you, and we (White Sox nation and me) cannot wait to see how far you'll go this weekend. Let's bring all the good vibes, patient at-bats, and a whole lot of fun!