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Mitch Ransdell/South Side Sox

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South Side Sox Player of the Week (April 28-May 4): Lucas Giolito

With his baseball future up in the air, Frosty froze the division-leading Twins last week in a stone-cold start

White Sox fans saw the very best side of Lucas Giolito last week, as the once-and-future ace held the Minnesota Twins to just two hits on 101 pitches.

Giolito, having just returned to the mound from bereavement leave, put his dependable fastball to work and notched seven strikeouts. But the game that should’ve clinched a White Sox sweep took a turn for the worse in extra innings, when incessant missed scoring opportunities and poor relief pitching tipped the scales in Minnesota’s favor.

Now in his seventh season wearing the Old English, Giolito seems to have found the rhythm that first brought him All-Star caliber fame in 2019. His intensity is palpable. Visibly frustrated on the mound when a pitch doesn’t land as planned, he can also be downright terrifying when staring down a batter over the webbing of his glove.

A recent column from baseball fortune teller Bob Nightengale suggests that Giolito may not be long for Chicago. The righty is currently playing on a one-year contract in his last year of arbitration, so his future as a free agent is certainly up in the air. Nightengale suggests that there may be a trade sooner than later, before the deadline in August.

Meanwhile, with Frosty working himself towards a winning record, let’s sit back and enjoy every stone-cold pitch.


2023 South Side Sox Players of the Week

Oscar Colás (February 25-March 2)
Andrew Vaughn (March 3-8)
Carlos Pérez (March 9-16)
Oscar Colás (March 17-22)
Cactus League MVP: Oscar Colás
Dylan Cease (March 30-April 5)
Luis Robert Jr. (April 6-12)
Lucas Giolito (April 13-20)
Jake Burger (April 21-27)
Lucas Giolito (April 28- May 4)


Top 10 MVP Standings

Lucas Giolito (35.9)
Seby Zavala (28.5)
Jake Burger (26.6)
Oscar Colás (17.1)
Zach Remillard (16.4)
Luis Robert Jr. (13.7)
Andrew Benintendi (12.9)
Andrew Vaughn (11.0)
Dylan Cease (10.1)
Carlos Pérez (8.8)

Top 10 Cold Cat Standings

Yoán Moncada (-16.1)
Yasmani Grandal (-15.6)
Alex Colomé (-11.8)
White Sox Offense (-10.0)
Keynan Middleton (-9.2)
Aaron Bummer (-8.9)
Jake Marisnick (-8.9)
Declan Cronin (-8.1)
Tristan Stivors (-7.9)
Joe Kelly (-7.8)

Befitting a player who’s been our MVP in two of the last three weeks, Lucas Giolito has wrestled away Seby Zavala’s month-long hold as White Sox MVP. Dang, it’s 2019 all over again. On the flip list, Alex Colomé wasted no time making a dent in the Cold Cats list, leaping from Charlotte last week to fourth-coldest on the team, in all of two or three games.


Writer Standings

Chrystal O’Keefe had a weird week, losing three to extend her SSS season-high losing streak to nine, then reeling off three wins to start crawling out of the muck. Meanwhile, Ryiin is still wait for they’s first win, ever, writing for SSS. It’s been a rough coverage year.


If you’re interested in seeing more of Mitch’s work, or if you’d like to purchase original drawings or prints, contact him via Twitter (@soxsketcher), Instagram (@southsidesharpie), or by e-mail at southsidesharpie@gmail.com. Thanks for supporting local artists!


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