Boston Red Sox ace Garrett Crochet hasn’t pitched like his usual, dominant self this season. Through six starts, the AL Cy Young runner-up had a 6.30 ERA and was uncharacteristically wild.
Turns out, there was a reason behind his struggles. The Red Sox placed Crochet on the injured list Wednesday due to left shoulder inflammation.
The move is retroactive to April 26, meaning Crochet could return sooner than expected based on the severity of the injury. The Red Sox have not revealed a timetable for his return just yet.
Crochet entered 2026 coming off easily his finest season in the majors. After battling injuries and coming up as a reliever with the Chicago White Sox, Crochet transitioned back to starting pitcher in 2024 and performed well in the role. In 146 innings, he posted a 3.58 ERA for Chicago. While Crochet made 32 starts that season, the team limited his innings heavily down the stretch in an attempt to prevent injury or overuse.
That offseason, the White Sox traded Crochet to the Red Sox for multiple prospects. In his first season with Boston, Crochet seemingly faced no workload restrictions. He actually led the majors with 205 1/3 innings, putting up a 2.59 ERA and racking up a league-leading 255 strikeouts. That performance was good enough for a second-place finish in the Cy Young voting.
Following his fantastic 2025, Crochet was expected to once again be the Red Sox’s ace. But the 26-year-old never seemed right. He struggled during spring training, putting up a 7.36 ERA over 14 2/3 innings.
Despite that, there was some belief Crochet would turn things around once the games actually meant something. The early returns were positive. Crochet posted a scoreless start on opening day, notching a win over the Cincinnati Reds.
But he couldn’t keep up that momentum moving forward. Crochet allowed four earned runs in his next start, bounced back with another scoreless outing and then gave up 15 earned runs over his next two appearances — including a 10-run implosion against the Minnesota Twins.
His most recent start, which occurred April 25 against the Baltimore Orioles, offered hope Crochet was beyond those struggles, as he did not allow a run over six strong innings of work. But that hope was short-lived following the Red Sox’s announcement Wednesday.
With Crochet sidelined, the Red Sox will likely continue to rely on young starters like Connelly Early and Payton Tolle. Both players have shown flashes of brilliance during their limited opportunities this season, and should have a longer runway to remain in the rotation depending on how long Crochet is out.
Still, the injury comes at a tough time for the Red Sox. Following the surprising firing of Alex Cora, there’s more pressure on the team to rebound following a miserable start. Crochet made that task much easier. Without him, the Red Sox will need to dig even deeper work their way back into playoff contention.
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