Mike Masala
“I think anytime you look around the league and you’re talking about a Top 3, Top 5 starting pitcher,” Red Sox pitching coach Andrew Bailey told MassLive recently, “as a manager I can only imagine what that means. You wake up and you know that you have a guy going that, there’s not a lot of arms better than that in the game. It’s got to feel really good. As a pitching coach, having worked with and coached some players of that caliber in the past, it’s nice because you know that he’s a guy who can get you out of a slump. He can just take over a game and win it. He can go deep into games and give the bullpen a reset. It’s a turn in the rotation that you look forward to — it can win you a series, it can start a winning streak.
“You know that, most turns, your team’s going to be in position to win late in the game. Those guys with elite stuff and command, the ability to attack the strike zone, that can get deep into games — the more you can do it, the better it is for the entire staff.”
Crochet debuted with the White Sox in 2020 and didn’t allow a run in his five appearances (six innings). In 2021, he was dominant out of the bullpen (2.82 ERA in 54 games), but an elbow injury led to Tommy John and a completely lost 2022 season.
In 2023, Crochet appeared in 13 games out of the bullpen after his return from the surgery with some rust (3.55 ERA, 1.974 WHIP in 12 ⅔ innings over 13 games.
Last year, Chicago moved the former first-round pick to the rotation, and he was great, posting a 3.58 ERA (2.69 FIP), 1.068 WHIP and 12.9 K/9 in 32 starts. However, he was limited down the stretch because he pitched for the worst team in modern baseball history, and he had never thrown more than 54 ⅓ innings (2021).
The questions about durability are real for the Red Sox and Crochet entering 2025, but when he’s at his best, there’s no doubt that he’s the best pitcher on the staff and one of the best in the league
