It was not the usual dominant performance from Lucas Giolito against the Royals, but it was a quality start. And he definitely deserved better from his bats in a 5-2 loss in Kansas City.
For the first three innings, Giolito looked like the pitcher that threw a scoreless inning in the All-Star Game: He retired all six batters in the first two innings, including two strikeouts. The third inning did bring a scare, as Nicky Lopez lined a double off of Giolito. The liner did break Giolito’s necklace, but he stayed in the game and worked through the trouble.