Sunday will provide bounce-back opportunities for Garrett Crochet and the Boston Red Sox.
The Red Sox will turn to Crochet (2-2, 7.58 ERA) for the first time since his career-worst outing last week when their four-game home series against the Detroit Tigers — tied at a game apiece — continues on Sunday afternoon. First pitch was pushed back three hours to 4:35 p.m. due to a forecast for rain in Boston.
Crochet allowed 11 runs (10 earned) on nine hits, three walks and a hit by pitch in just 1 2/3 innings in his most recent start Monday at the Minnesota Twins, a 13-6 loss. His ERA more than doubled from 3.12.
The major league strikeout leader in 2025 (255 in 205 1/3 innings) did not have a strikeout on Monday.
The ace left-hander had allowed just 13 runs over his eight prior outings, including one postseason appearance in 2025. He gave up more than five runs and pitched less than five innings only once last season — a 7-6 loss to the Houston Astros on Aug. 11 — and had worked at least six frames in two of his first three starts this season.
“Trying to look at it like I would any start. It’s tough to say following the last one, but that’s the only way to separate,” Crochet said.
He also will look to help the Red Sox turn around their fortunes following their 4-1 Saturday loss in which they struck out 10 times and went 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position across six innings against two-time reigning Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal.
Boston, a 1-0 winner in 10 innings in Friday’s series opener, has gone back-to-back games scoring one or fewer runs on five or fewer hits.
“You have to chip away with aces,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “You have to make sure when you have your chances to cash in, get it close enough.”
“A 4-0 game in the big leagues, we can turn it around anytime. We couldn’t find the way (against Skubal),” added first baseman Willson Contreras.
Both of Crochet’s career starts against the Tigers came in 2024, but he’s made nine total appearance against them. He is 0-1 with a 1.80 ERA in those games.
Detroit has had mixed results lately, having won seven of its past eight games while also snapping a nine-game road losing streak on Saturday.
“I don’t think any of us are too concerned about our road record (3-9),” Skubal said. “Obviously, it needs to get better and needs to improve. We need to win games on the road, but it’s such a small sample size. … We’re just trying to win every single day we show up to the yard.”
The Saturday game saw the Tigers take a 1-0 lead that they would not relinquish when Kerry Carpenter drew a bases-loaded walk in the first. He added a solo home run in the fourth.
It also was a multi-hit day for Detroit’s touted infield prospect, Kevin McGonigle, who had an RBI single in the fourth and scored a run in the first.
“It was a well-played game all around,” manager A.J. Hinch said. “I thought our at-bats were really tough early.”
With an opportunity to swing the series, the Tigers wil turn to their own southpaw in Framber Valdez (1-1, 3.75 ERA), who is coming off a season-long outing of seven innings on Tuesday against the Kansas City Royals. He allowed just one run on four hits in a 2-1 Detroit win but wasn’t part of the decision.
Valdez has appeared in six games (four starts) against Boston, going 3-2 with a 3.10 ERA.
–Field Level Media
