The Boston Red Sox are in the midst of a battle to make the playoffs, and while they’re pretty secure in making the field, what seed they have is still up in the air. That’s a race they’ll have to run without ace pitcher Garrett Crochet.
That doesn’t mean that Crochet is going to miss out on the playoffs themselves, though. Instead, Tim Healey of The Boston Globe is reporting that he is on track to return for the first round of the playoffs. That should end up being a massive boost to the Red Sox right when they need it the most.
As it stands, the Red Sox are in the second Wild Card slot. However, that’s only good for third in the AL East. If nothing else changes, they’d once again see the New York Yankees in the opening round of the playoffs.
Crochet has been out since April 29th with left shoulder inflammation, and he suffered a couple of setbacks while trying to return, including a lat strain. He’s been on the IL so long that it altered his contract.
Boston Red Sox Ace Garrett Crochet Likely Won’t Be Able to Make a Rehab Start
One reality of the timeline that the Red Sox and Garrett Crochet now have in place is that he likely won’t be able to make a rehab start. Instead, he’ll be thrown right into the playoffs.
“Someone brought it up the other day. They were like, isn’t that crazy? I’m like, not really,” Crochet said on Monday. “I mean, not [to be all] me, me, me, me, but I’ve done crazy things before. I’m not Joe Schmoe. I’ve done impressive things. I think that that would be a big ask for some people, but I don’t think it’s a crazy ask for me.”
Crochet finished second in the voting for the Cy Young Award in 2025. However, he struggled when healthy in 2026, likely a signal of the arm injury that was coming to derail his season. If healthy, Crochet should go back to being that elite pitcher for the Red Sox, but arm injuries can obviously be tricky.
That, of course, is going to lead to questions about his velocity. As far as that’s concerned, it’s still an unknown for Crochet.
“There’s going to be a time where I need to step on it,” Crochet said. “First bullpen, not the time.”
Notably, Crochet has been in a similar situation before. That is throwing live bullpens but not a rehab game. In 2020, he was similarly not pitching much. That is, until the Chicago White Sox added him to their postseason roster. In one game that postseason, Crochet pitched 0.2 innings and had 2 strikeouts.
“That’s pretty similar,” Crochet said, “to how I made my debut.”
Crochet Will Return as a Reliever for the Red Sox
When Garrett Crochet does return for the Red Sox, it won’t be as the ace they got used to having in 2025. Instead, it’s going to be as a reliever. He’ll only be able to give them one or two innings a game out of the bullpen.
Instead, the Red Sox are going to need starters who are ready to give them some length. That’s a shortened rotation of the pitchers who put them in this position over the course of the season.
Sonny Gray, a veteran who has been excellent, will likely be among those starters. As will Payton Tolle, who has had a massive breakout season. Then, Ranger Suarez is likely to be a playoff starter, while Jake Bennett has also made the case for himself.
Regardless of who starts, there is plenty of excitement for Crochet to return. In particular, what he can do in that short burst from the bullpen.
Red Sox Injury Update: SP Garrett Crochet Sets Timeline for Return