Crochet caps 1st campaign in Boston with 2nd-place AL CYA finish
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BOSTON -- Over the past few decades, the Red Sox have had a steady succession of aces, from Roger Clemens to Pedro Martinez to Curt Schilling to Jon Lester to Chris Sale.
In just one season with the club, Garrett Crochet made it clear he is up to being the next dominant pitching force for Boston.
The Red Sox gained credibility as a contender the instant Crochet was acquired from the White Sox at last year’s Winter Meetings, and his dominant campaign in ‘25 led to him finishing second in the American League’s Cy Young Award race on Wednesday.
Tigers lefty Tarik Skubal claimed the trophy for the second straight season, receiving 26 first-place votes and four second-place votes for a total of 198 points. Crochet, meanwhile, earned the opposite: four first-place votes and 26 second-place votes for a total of 132 points. The Astros’ Hunter Brown finished third with 80 points, while one other Red Sox pitcher received votes: Closer Aroldis Chapman, who finished seventh with four fifth-place votes.
While Crochet fell short in his pursuit to become Boston’s first Cy Young Award winner since Rick Porcello in 2016, it took nothing away from a season that was impressive in so many levels.
The lasting memory Crochet provided came from a game that didn’t count toward his Cy Young candidacy.
In Game 1 of Boston’s AL Wild Card Series against the Yankees, Crochet went 7 2/3 innings while throwing 117 pressure-packed pitches. He allowed four hits and one run, walking none and striking out 11.
It left Red Sox fans thirsting for more such heroics in the coming seasons. After signing a six-year, $170 million extension with the Sox shortly after the season started, Crochet should be fronting Boston’s rotation through ‘32.
One of the top abilities for a true ace is availability, and Crochet (18-5, 2.59 ERA in 32 starts) took pride in leading the AL with 205 1/3 innings in his first season in Boston. Crochet also set the pace in the AL with an 11.18 K/9 and led MLB with 255 K's. The big lefty was among the league leaders in several other key categories, including WHIP (fifth) and opponents’ average (eighth). Only Skubal (7.30) had a better K/BB ratio than Crochet’s 5.54.
The under-the-hood numbers are every bit as impressive. Crochet ranked in the 90th percentile or better in the following Statcast categories: pitching run value (99th), fastball run value (95th), breaking run value (99th), expected ERA (91st) and chase percentage (90th).
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Crochet was the ultimate example of a player who started winning streaks, extended winning streaks and stopped losing streaks. There were many outings that stuck out during Crochet’s season-long run of excellence. With his team trying to break out of a slump on June 1, Crochet struck out 12 while allowing one run over seven innings in a 3-1 win in Atlanta. While extending his team’s eventual 10-game winning streak to nine on July 12, Crochet went the distance in a 1-0 win over the Rays, walking none and punching out nine. In his final three regular-season starts against the rival Yankees, Crochet had a 2.11 ERA and had three walks and 30 strikeouts in 21 1/3 innings.
Crochet was voted by the Boston chapter of the BBWAA as the team’s Most Valuable Player.