Garrett Crochet has relieved nearly half of his career-high 54.1 innings from 2021. Crochet has impressed White Sox fans with his 22.2 innings of pitching this season. He continued it on Saturday with a 10-strikeout game against the Reds despite giving up five earned runs.
Crochet was hot early, striking out the entire Reds lineup. He then struck out seven more, walked three, and allowed four hits against the league's eighth-best offense. He erred in the second inning, allowing the Reds to score all five runs. He blames poor command and a focus on precision aiming.
"My command wasn't there, so I was kinda searching for something the first two innings," Crochet said afterward. I'd attribute that to not being as competitive in the zone as I have been. I seemed to focus more on hitting areas than throwing strikes."
A pitcher thrown into a starter role is hard to criticize. Last season, Crochet pitched 12.2 innings in 13 games for the Sox as a short-inning reliever. He's in his second season after Tommy John surgery.
What the Sox want is a Crochet challenge. He hasn't started since college. However, he's pitching confidently and aggressively to maximize his innings. "Competing in the zone is my game," Crochet remarked.
The Sox are thrilled. Crochet is now the team's best pitcher. They're riding the wave despite his innings as a first-time major league starter.
At least, in the interim, we'll let this guy go," Chris Getz stated this week. The Garrett experience has been great. When he pitches, everyone thinks we can win. I constantly wonder how he handles lineups.
I expect we'll have to be more measured at some time. We're not there yet. Garrett's current contributions to this team are much appreciated."
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