Garrett Crochet faced hitters at Fenway Park Tuesday, his first live look since late May, according to Boston Globe reporter Tim Healey, and a “huge step,” Healey wrote, in his comeback.
Boston has no minor league games left to give Crochet a rehab outing, so any comeback jumps straight from a bullpen session into a spot that raises the stakes for Boston’s postseason push.
Crochet threw to outfielder Ceddanne Rafaela during the session, according to MassLive beat writer Chris Cotillo. That work followed a two-inning side session Saturday at Polar Park in Worcester, where interim manager Chad Tracy said a clean outing would put Crochet in line to face hitters again this week.
The 2025 American League Cy Young Award runner-up threw 16 pitches in the live batting practice session Tuesday, according to Cotillo.
“I felt like, with the way that went, I could go get outs,” Crochet said after the session, as quoted by Cotillo, in the most encouraging statement the Red Sox have heard from him at least since his initial injury almost five months ago.
“Garrett Crochet says what happens next is up to (chief baseball officer) Craig Breslow and (manager) Chad Tracy,” Cotillo reported.
Crochet Battled Shoulder, Lat Injuries All Season
Crochet’s injury saga traces back to April 25, when the left-hander last pitched in a game, six shutout innings at Baltimore. Boston placed him on the injured list four days later with left shoulder inflammation, retroactive to April 26, after a 6.30 ERA across six rocky starts that included an 11-run outing at Minnesota.
He ramped quickly, throwing one inning of live batting practice May 26 with his fastball sitting in the mid-90s. But left lat tightness felled him a few days later, and Tracy shut the program down. An MRI found a low-grade strain, and Boston shuttled him to the 60-day injured list June 5.
Crochet returned to the Fenway mound Sept. 11, throwing 25 pitches with fastballs touching 92-93 mph.
Crochet Eyes Bullpen Role for October
The plan has never been for Crochet to rebuild into a starter’s workload. It’s a lefty delivering one or two innings out of the bullpen for a Red Sox team that has been one of baseball’s hottest clubs since the All-Star break, according to The Athletic.
“If Garrett Crochet looks like Garrett Crochet and he’s healthy and able to go out there and pitch, and it looks like him, yeah, that helps any team,” Tracy said, according to MLB.com‘s Ian Browne.
The American League wild-card round opens Sept. 29, leaving Boston a narrow window to get Crochet a second live look and activate him before rosters lock.
The left-arm trouble is not a first. Crochet had Tommy John surgery in 2022 that wiped out his entire season, then missed 81 games in 2023 with shoulder inflammation after returning from the procedure.
Boston acquired Crochet from the White Sox in December 2024, and he rewarded the trade with an 18-5, 2.59 ERA season that made him the American League Cy Young runner-up. He then signed a six-year, $170 million extension with Boston.
Crochet’s stint on the injured list already cost him something concrete. An August clause voided his 2030 opt-out and tacked on a $15 million club option for 2032, a reminder of how costly this lost season has been no matter how October unfolds.
Garrett Crochet Injury Update: Red Sox Ace Takes ‘Huge Step’ Toward Return