The Boston Red Sox continue to stay busy this offseason, as we draw closer to the start of the 2026 season. The team announced on Tuesday, January 6, that they signed right-handed pitcher Kutter Crawford to a one-year deal, ahead of the 2026 MLB season. Upon the announcement of the agreement, this is a win-win deal for the team and Crawford, who looks to bounce back after missing the 2025 season due to surgery to reconstruct the stabilizing sheath of the extensor carpi ulnaris (ECU) in his right wrist. Now that the deal is done, what does it mean for both the Red Sox and Crawford as we head into the 2026 season?
Kutter Crawford Staying in Boston
GettyBoston Red Sox’s Kutter Crawford
The deal between the Red Sox and Crawford was officially a one-year, $2.75 million contract, which will run through his age-30 season. The Red Sox still have two more years of control going through the 2028 season. He was drafted 491st overall in the 2017 MLB draft. Over his career with the Red Sox has a 4.56 ERA in 392.1 innings of work, with 389 strikeouts in 86 games (69 starts). In his last full MLB season, he finished with a 9-16 record (MLB-worst), with a 4.36 ERA in 183.2 innings pitched. He did lead MLB with 33 starts in 2024, his age-28 season. He also finished with 175 strikeouts, a 95 ERA+, a FIP of 4.65, an MLB-worst 34 home runs allowed, and a 1.9 wins above replacement (WAR).
Crawford’s best season came in 2023, when he finished with a 6-8 record, a 4.04 ERA, 135 strikeouts in 129.1 innings pitched, an ERA+ of 113 (career-best), and a 1.9 WAR. When it comes down to it, the best-case scenario is that Crawford could be a depth arm for the rotation, which is still determining who can fill the No. 4 and No. 5 spots behind Garret Crochet, Sonny Gray, and Brayan Bello. If anything, the Red Sox could use him out of the bullpen as well to provide some long relief over the course of the 2026 season.
This deal is a win-win for both sides, as it gives the team room to be flexible and a player they know well. Regarding Crawford, it’s with a team he knows well and sees a path to returning to a form that could help the team in 2026. Furthermore, when diving deeper into the analytics of Crawford, it makes sense why the team is taking a one-year flyer on the Florida native RHP.
Looking at the Numbers
When looking at his Baseball Savant page, Crawford has some solid stuff under the hood to be reliable in 2026. His offspeed run value in 2024 came in at the 76th percentile, along with his whiff% being at the 88th percentile (32.8%). His xBA was in the 71st (.224), along with his BB% at 68th (6.7%) and his hard-hit rate% at the 70th percentile (36.3%).
Overall, Crawford has a decent savant page that constitutes the Red Sox to give him a year to reacclimate to the majors and build on another deal in 2027 and beyond. He carries a five-pitch mix of a four-seam, cutter, sweeper, split, and curve. His arm angle of 48-degrees makes it interesting for hitters to see his stuff, and why his offspeed pitches are his bread and butter. While his velo is not the highest on the team, his sweeper produces over 12 inches of break, compared to his curve, which almost has 18 inches of drop.
The hope is that Crawford will produce more on his breaking stuff and add to the velo of his four-seam and cutter. The latter is his most used pitches (four-seam 34% and cutter 32%). He only used his sweeper 18% of the time, along with his split (9%) and curve (7%). On average, all of his pitches are below league average, so he will rely more on location and break, rather than blowing pitches past guys. If Crawford could induce more whiff rate and ground ball contact on weak hits, he could be in for a bounce-back 2026 season with the Red Sox. It’ll be interesting to see how the season will play out, but Crawford will be one to watch in Spring Training and the upcoming 2026 season.
Red Sox Sign Kutter Crawford to One-Year Deal for 2026