Newly-acquired Red Sox lefty Garrett Crochet was in attendance for today’s Fenway Fest event in Boston, and he spoke to reporters (include Chris Cotillo of MassLive) about the state of extension talks between Red Sox brass and Crochet’s own camp. The comments come on the heels of reporting earlier this week that suggested the sides had begun preliminary discussions about a longer-term deal.
“There have been conversations with my agent and the front office, just kind of getting a feel for one another,” Crochet said, as relayed by Cotillo. “Staying in Boston long-term is something that has a lot of merit in my mind and something I think would be awesome. In the meantime, I’m just focusing on spring and getting ready for the upcoming season, trying to stay focused one day at a time. When something’s presented, then we’ll attack it.”
Crochet, 25, enjoyed a breakout season with the White Sox last year as he moved from a relief role into the rotation. He made the most of the opportunity, pitching to a solid 3.58 ERA in 146 innings of work with a 2.69 FIP and an eye-popping 35.1% strikeout rate. That dominant performance on a team that broke the all-time MLB loss record made a trade nearly inevitable, and Boston pounced on the opportunity during the Winter Meetings last month and shipped a package headlined by catching prospect Kyle Teel and outfield prospect Braden Montgomery to Chicago in exchange for Crochet’s services.
The southpaw immediately adds a clear #1 starter to the front of the Red Sox rotation, but with a young core of talent reaching the major leagues and knocking on the door at Triple-A, locking up Crochet beyond his remaining two years of control would make plenty of sense for Boston. Crochet is clearly open to such an arrangement, and his comments today only served to confirm the lefty’s interest in locking in a longer-term guarantee. It’s hardly a surprise that Crochet would be open to listening on extension talks. He’s suffered through a number of injury-marred seasons already in his career, and that elevated injury risk surely makes a long-term guarantee more attractive.
To that end, he made clear prior to the trade deadline last summer that if he was going to go over his established innings limit to pitch in the 2024 postseason after a midseason trade, he would want to get an extension worked out prior to a deal coming together. Of course, no deal was ultimately made and now Crochet is in Boston. It’s unclear exactly what sort of deal either Crochet or the Red Sox are angling for at this point, though one noteworthy reference point is a report from ESPN’s Jeff Passan over the summer that suggested Crochet was seeking a nine-figure deal at the time.
Crochet wasn’t the only Red Sox player to discuss the state of extension talks today, as top prospects Roman Anthony and Kristian Campbell both spoke to WEEI today and revealed that neither has been approached by the Red Sox about the possibility of a pre-debut extension. That’s not necessarily a major shock, given that pre-debut extensions are generally quite rare. They’ve become more common in recent years, however, as evidenced by both Jackson Chourio of the Brewers and Colt Keith of the Tigers signing deals of that sort last offseason alone.
The Red Sox would surely love to lock up either Anthony or Campbell beyond their current windows of control. Anthony is rated by Baseball America as the #1 prospect in all of baseball, while Campbell isn’t ranked too far behind at #24. Both figure to make their big league debuts in 2025, though the exact timing of those debuts remains up in the air. There’s been some speculation that Campbell, in particular, could be in the conversation for an Opening Day roster spot should he manage to win the second base job away from David Hamilton and Vaughn Grissom in Spring Training this spring, but it shouldn’t surprise anyone if both youngsters are in the majors by the time the first half of the 2025 season comes to a close.
While there’s certainly value from a player’s perspective in locking in a major payday before they so much as take their first big league at-bat, they also typically come with much lower price tags relative to extensions signed as soon as during a player’s pre-arb years as a big leaguer. Chourio’s extension with the Brewers guaranteed him a record-setting $82MM last winter, but that pales in comparison to the nine-figure deals secured by players like Julio Rodriguez and Bobby Witt Jr. once they had already established themselves as star-caliber big leaguers. That said, pre-debut extensions aren’t without risk for the team either; even elite prospects can go on to struggle in the majors, with Jon Singleton of the Astros and Scott Kingery of the Phillies standing out as examples of players who signed pre-debut extensions and then went on to provide their clubs with little value over the life of those deals.
Given that, it’s perhaps not surprising for the sides to have not yet engaged in extension talks. Anthony and Campbell may well both prefer to bet on themselves early in their careers as they eye either a more lucrative extension down the line or free agency once their time under team control comes to a close. On the other hand, the Red Sox may prefer to see how Anthony, Campbell, and other top prospects like Marcelo Mayer develop before making extension offers as they have over the years with players like Brayan Bello, Garrett Whitlock, Rafael Devers, and Xander Bogaerts.
TrillionaireTeamOperator
I find the various approaches to discussing their contract situation fascinating.
I kinda get that they really do, for the most part, leave the majority of the negotiating to their agent, with some ballpark figures in mind for themselves that their agent goes in with, but when they act like “I have no idea what’s going on with that, I’m not paying attention to it- oh that’s my salary? That’s my contract? Yeah I just kinda found out when you did. Cool.” is kinda ridiculous to me.
KnicksFanCavsFan
@Trill
Mngmt disks to the agent and agent speaks to client. Until the team makes an offer, what’s there to talk about publicly?
KnicksFanCavsFan
@Trill
Mngmt speaks to the agent and agent speaks to client. Until the team makes an offer, what’s there to talk about publicly?
'Tang It
That’s why they have agents
YankeesBleacherCreature
@Trill It’s literally why athletes (and the wealthy) pay big fees to agents, lawyers, accountants, financial advisors, personal assistants, chefs/nutrionists, etc. They apply their signatures so that they can focus on what they do best.
Tigers3232
@Trillionaire Who do you suppose Crochet would be in contact with that would give him such information? He has yet to play a game with the team and it is the offseason.
Considering he has little relationship with his new club at this point he would ve foolish to discuss any such thing with an unfamiliar front office without his agent.
Bart Harley Jarvis
@TrillionsireTeamOperatir,
As a member of the .1%, I can verify what @YankeesBleacherCreature says here, especially with regard to personal assistants, chefs/nutrionists, etc.
Zerbs63
When Crochet talks about extension he means playoffs, he wont play in playoffs without an extension.
Fever Pitch Guy
Zerb – It’s hilarious that some people here close their eyes to the fact that Crochet refused to pitch in the postseason last year without an extension.
He was so worried about his health that he refused to pitch, but now just 5 months later the Red Sox are supposed to hand him a 9-figure contract because they should have no worries about his health?
Where’s the logic? That is totally illogical.
steldarl87
You know better, Fever. He was in his first year being stretched out as a starter, wanted an extension if he was going to be asked by a new team to pitch even more innings in the postseason. That doesn’t mean an extension now is the right move, but aren’t you always writing about how cheap Henry et al are? How do you feel about the Brewers’ Chourio contract? And though I know you think the Sox got fleeced in the Crochet trade, wouldn’t you find it even more problematic if Crochet is as advertised and only pitched for the Sox for two years?
Fever Pitch Guy
stel – Here’s the question: Who determines ANY pitcher’s workload? Is it the player? Or is it the team in conjunction with their medical staff?
So let’s say Burnes pitches 200 innings in the regular season this year, and doesn’t want to pitch in the postseason out of a fear of injury. Is he allowed to make that call?
Yes Henry is cheap, do you understand what the definition of cheap is? Being cheap doesn’t mean not spending at all, it means making poor decisions just to potentially save a few bucks.
I will once again reiterate my stance on extensions: If the player has proven for at least one year to be productive at the MLB level, and said player has a solid medical history, I’m fine with the big extension.
Does Chourio have a history of injuries? Crochet certainly does.
I’ll say it again, all I want is to see ONE YEAR of a healthy Crochet with at least 180 IP and a sub-3.25 ERA. Then I’m all for giving him a $200M+ contract.
One year of waiting is not an unreasonable ask, don’t you agree?
pepenas34
The more you wait the more you pay. He was willing to secure his future.
A good gamble now I think is 80MM/4 y or 105MM/5y
Shoman5
FPG.. What do you estimate the difference in a 5 year contract extension would be from this year to next? Especially if he pitched to the sane level as last year? He’s also less likely sign an extension with just one year left unless it’s at Full or close to full market vslue
Tigers3232
Crochet did not refuse to pitch for his team, White Sox were never at any point near making the Playoffs. White Sox thought they had a huge trade chip and all the leverage at the deadline, only with Crochet only a couple seasons out from free agency he has well had leverage.
MLB teams make out like bandits on team controlled years, only in Crochet’s situation he held some of the cards. Now had he made this comment about his team this might be debatable, since it was him using leverage and making a statement about a potential future team I don’t see this as a blemish against Crochet.
Fever Pitch Guy
Shoman – Good question to which I don’t feel comfortable guessing at an answer. This is a very unique situation that could involve many variables including innings incentives, opt outs, NTC, deferred money, number of years, etc.
I’m certain he would be willing to sign an extension after this season, and I don’t think he would insist on double whatever he may be offered now. He knows it’s possible he could get injured in 2026 too.
If forced to take a stab, I’d say if he’s offered right now a straight $150M for 5 years and he has a great season then he’d probably get $200M for 5 years after this season.
I think a year of solid proof is worth spending an extra $50M on him after the season. We are talking only $10M more per season.
wbz41
Surely that he had only thrown like 6 innings since 2020 plays in to his and his agent’s thought process. Here’s a guy who was putting up a monster 1st half with outstanding peripherals. He hit the powerball with that first half. Asking him to eclipse 200 innings or whatever with a postseason run and all the TJ risk that comes along with such a huge increase in workload without some guaranteed money in the bank, to me, seems reasonable in retrospect. Will be interesting to see if he would take some “life-changing” money that isn’t a mega-deal. I doubt it, but who knows.
Fever Pitch Guy
wbz – Sorry but every time a pitcher becomes available via trade or free agency they are extremely hyped, and some people buy into the hype. You calling Crochet’s first half a “monster first half” is part of that hype.
FACT: In the first half (thru June 30) Crochet was only the 7th-best pitcher in MLB (minimum 100 IP)..
Lugo, Suarez, Burnes, Houck, Gilbert and Wheeler all performed better than Crochet.
In fact Lugo, Suarez and Burnes had ERA’s that were nearly a full run lower than Crochet.
Don’t get me wrong, Crochet was very good …. just not “best in MLB” good.
wbz41
Ehhhhhhh, considering his previous track record which is basically non-existent, isn’t being a top 10 pitcher in the 1st half with wipe-out stuff pretty decent? He went from a relative unknown to having pretty much every contender kicking his tires. I’m not saying he’s headed to Cooperstown, I’m just saying he and his agent may have realized that they caught some lighting in a bottle and maximized that opportunity.
WadeBoggsWildRide
But he was HUGE!
Fever Pitch Guy
wbz – For sure, that’s exactly what happened. He had a strong first half, and immediately it was basically “he’s an opener for the remainder of the season, give him a contract extension right now if you want him”.
Here’s more food for thought: Why did he insist on an extension just to pitch in the postseason, and yet he made no demands about the remainder of the regular season?
What if a team acquired him last summer and wanted him to pitch more than 31 innings in August/September …. would he have said no to that as well? Hmmmm …..
bwmiller79
That is a bad teammate, that will haunt him for his entire career. Say what you want about professional sports being a business, it’s a team sport. To use that as leverage in extension talks is offensive to your fellows, not to ownership.
It’s clear there will be a fair and reasonable offer made by the Red Sox. Bello is a legitimate comparison. He signed a nice extension with the team. Crochet has earned a premium on that deal with the season he turned in, but again he shouldn’t be getting close to market value as if he were a free agent.
You come up through the minors, you get a standard rookie deal. Arbitration is in place to reward you for good performances. You honor your rookie deal or you truly are a mercenary and it will follow you. You won’t be welcome on any team that offers you a contract.
It is not worth it to leverage ownership in that way.
bwmiller79
I will say that if Crochet was referring to last season’s playoffs, and a trade at the deadline, it is fair. Having an innings limit set preseason by the White Sox, pitching with that mindset for half a season, having set it into your mind that you likely won’t be pitching in the playoffs with your current team, there is a good argument to be made by the player.
Fever Pitch Guy
miller – Crochet refusing to pitch without an extension was such a fascinating story, it’s unfortunate the media didn’t pursue the issue further.
Legally could he have gotten away with it without breaching his contract?
Would he have needed a doctor’s confirmation to enforce his demand, something that proves he would be jeopardizing his career and earning potential by pitching in the postseason without an extension?
And what about the rest of the regular season? Would he have refused to pitch more than the 31 innings he agreed to pitch after the trade deadline? I have yet to see that question brought up either.
bwmiller79
I had thought that he was leveraging the Red Sox this season with that approach but it makes more sense that it was last season and his refusing to pitch in the playoffs after a trade at the deadline. I agree with him in that case. I misunderstood what @Zerb was referring to.
Fever Pitch Guy
miller – How do you know he won’t make the same demand this year if he doesn’t get an extension before the postseason? You don’t.
I have followed the game a long, long time. I cannot ever recall a pitcher making such a demand as a trade contingency.
If you can think of another example, please let me know.
He absolutely handcuffed the ChiSox by making that demand. Because obviously any team that would have had an interest in acquiring him would be a contender who would need him to be available to pitch in the postseason.
No trade happened because no team was willing to give him an extension. What does that tell you????
ChipperChop
@Fever What it tells you is the ChiSox STILL traded him and according to some, fleeced the RSox in the trade. No “handcuffing” happened. I don’t blame Crochet one bit. Most of these guys get 1 shot and lifetime financial security for them and their families. No chance I’m risking that by going well over the amount of innings I’ve ever thrown in a season, my first year as a starter just so the ChiSox can potentially get get more in a trade. As it turns out they probably got as much as they were going to get for him regardless.
But you go over all these “what if” scenarios without once mentioning the what if’s from Crochets prospective. The obvious…what if he’s traded and takes the ball as much as the team he goes to wants and ends up blowing out his arm and is never the same again. That team that traded for him would be over it in two years or less when the team control ends or they non-tender the injured pitcher. Crochet, on the other hand, has to live with that the rest of his life.
Fever Pitch Guy
Chip – So you are saying whatever team acquires him last summer wouldn’t have his best interests in mind?
These days teams are extremely overprotective of pitchers, they are not gonna give up a prospect haul for a pitcher and then abuse him to the point where he gets injured.
I’ve asked some very good questions here, I’m looking for a good discussion on it. Can a healthy pitcher legally refuse to pitch if his contract demands aren’t met?
Has he set a precedent?
pepenas34
Strasburg did not pitch in the postseason when he was coming off an injury because pitch limit set on the preseason.
Ohtani is not starting the season pitching because pitch limit.
Those examples are in the same team that made the plan, that was the reason he was not changed last year.
ChipperChop
If the acquiring team is in a playoff chase, makes the playoffs and gave up prospect capital to acquire Crochet to be their ace/co-ace for a playoff run do I think they are going to worry about an innings limit with no extension in place? Absolutely not.
And you mentioned earlier “has there ever been a player to make demands like that before a trade?”. Not sure. But I also can’t think of a pitcher that has ever been in Crochets situation. A 24-25 y/o that’s pitched total of about 200 innings over a 6 year period which included a major injury and one year absence suddenly asked to potentially pitch 170-180+ in a single season to facilitate a trade. And that player has yet to have their big payday. Can you name one who’s been in that situation? If not then it’s no wonder you can’t think of one that’s made the demands Crochet made to facilitate a trade.
Zerbs63
Now on a team with Walker Buehler, an ultimate competitor and a guy who will give you every thing he has, even when he knows he’s not at his best. Can’t imagine those two will get along
Tigers3232
@bw His teammates were not going to the playoffs. Now if he was a bad hypothetical potential teammate, that’s what would be debatable here
bwmiller79
I think he is likely a good teammate, I completely misunderstood the situation. I was offline for the entire year in 2023 and 2024, just got back online a few months ago. I had been listening to games on the AM/FM radio and picking up some newspapers once in a while but couldn’t follow the news closely.
Phree4u
Boston has no need to extend him then.
Fever Pitch Guy
Phree – The Red Sox have a MAJOR need to extend him.
If he walks and the Red Sox end up giving away Teel, Monty and two other good prospects for just a 2-year rental of Crochet, that would be a really, really bad look.
Make no mistake, Crochet has all the leverage. So much so that the Red Sox voluntarily gave him an extra millie for this season, while trying to squeeze half a millie from Duran.
JoeBrady
Sure, last year, when he was on an innings limitation.
johncoltrane
redsox have made some v questionable decisions the past few yrs. Trading mookie, trading sale,signing story, giving up teel & braden
Fever Pitch Guy
John – Agreed! So far the Mookie trade, Sale trade, and Story contract have all blown up in their face.
We shall see how the Crochet trade plays out.
Shoman5
I would say not signing Xander and Lester worked in their favor though. We gave up a lot of prospects to get Sale and those prospects only average MLB players at best. Won that trade by a mile. So trading prospects I don’t think can be said considered a bad move yet..
Fever Pitch Guy
Shoman – Xander has a 5.6 WAR in his two season with the Padres, despite dealing with the injuries.
During that same time Story has a 1.5 WAR.
And remember, Xander would have stayed for just $160M …. which is just $20M more than what the Sox gave Story.
As for Lester ….. 61-31 with a 3.33 ERA during his first 4 years with the Cubs, and he was brilliant as usual in the postseason during that time. It was a horrendous decision to lowball him, and even John Henry admitted such.
Denden
Don’t forget sale extension as well
Fever Pitch Guy
Den – Exactly!! That was another FOMO move that backfired bigtime.
letitbelowenstein
They were forced into trading Betts. I’ve said it here a dozen times. I’m not doing it again.
Fever Pitch Guy
“It’s hardly a surprise that Crochet would be open to listening on extension talks. He’s suffered through a number of injury-marred seasons already in his career, and that elevated injury risk surely makes a long-term guarantee more attractive (to Crochet).”
That quote from the article needs to be repeated over and over.
The guy has only 10 good starts for his entire career, and he pitched only 44 innings after June 30, 2024.
It’s hilarious the people who want to give him a 9-figure contract right now are the same people who wanted to run Chris Sale out of town because of his injury marred seasons.
Logjammer D"Baggagecling
Give him a max of 5 years guaranteed. Option for a 6th if he wins the Cy Young.
bcjd
I like that this kid is clearly valuing stability. Any 4-6 year contract he can get now will be life-changing money if properly managed. The arbitration awards he’s in line for are paltry in comparison. I like his conservative approach to his career.
cwsOverhaul
Crochet was adamant he was a starter and backed it up in his first intentional IP limit since it would be a major increase. TJS is so common, don’t see his risk being higher than others. RSox got a stud in his prime. If 2 of the 4 prospects traded help WSox, that’s the way it should be.
Fever Pitch Guy
cws – Did you even read the article?
I get that you probably never follow the White Sox, so I will let you know he also had back and shoulder injuries.
cwsOverhaul
WSox fan. The previous Hahn/KW regime and training staff had the Midas touch in a bad way be it he/Dunning/Rodon/Kopech as far as the key arms. The worst is hopefully behind in that regard…..and for Crochet in Boston.
JoeBrady
If 2 of the 4 prospects traded help WSox, that’s the way it should be.
==================
It’s probably a slight benefit to the RS if they succeed. It should increase interest in other RS prospects if the first handful are successful. All that matters to me is that Crochet is successful.
BronxBombers23
When we talk about talent and stuff, he’s definitely a Top10 SP. But I’m still not sure if I would extend him. There are a lot of question marks. All questions will be answered by the end of the season…
Fever Pitch Guy
Bronx – A voice of reason, thank you.
Sabermetric Acolyte
Unfortunately, I agree. Part of it is an old school Boston sports fan pessimism but the simple truth is we have one season to really go by. If he comes out of this season showing he’s capable of being a staff ace then sure there will be grumbling of why didn’t the Red Sox try to sign him for half his value 9 months earlier. But the flip side is, like many players before him, find out he’s not capable of pitching in a place with a lot more scrutiny like Boston.
As you say, by the end of the season we’ll have a better idea of who Crochet will be.
Fever Pitch Guy
Sabes – Excellent post!
As for Boston fans, it’s more about us being cautious than being pessimistic. Not making high risk moves is the intelligent thing to do, and Boston is one of the most intelligent cities in the country.
baseballguru
Sign Bregman and Scott
Fever Pitch Guy
guru – I’d love to have Scott. I wouldn’t bet on it though.
acell10
Hard pass on Bergman
whyhayzee
The Red Sox are going to be really good this year.
Take it to the bank.
JoeBrady
that suggested Crochet was seeking a nine-figure deal at the time.
==========================
It’s a meaningless number without the number of years. Is it $100M for four years, or 8 years? Foes the $100M include his two arb years?
SewaldSwansonSwoon
Crochet, if extended, will be another Chris Sale disaster
ghostofmookiebetts
A “clear number one starter” GIVE ME A BREAK!
The guy has 1/2 a season of success starting and he’s immediately a CLEAR number one?!? This is why IF there’s an extension it’s not going to be cheap. Everyone has anointed him an ace, so he’s going to want ace money. Henry isn’t going to pay him anywhere near that.
JoeBrady
Crochet is the #2 favorite for the AL Cy Young award in 2025. Behind only Skubal. That makes him a clear #1.
ghostofmookiebetts
Based on what, Joe? Projections? Those are fine for fantasy baseball but, I’ll wait to see what happens in real life. I certainly hope that’s the case but don’t see Henry ponying up for him based on hypotheticals.
SewaldSwansonSwoon
JoeBrady doesn’t live in reality
JoeBrady
ghostofmookiebetts
Based on what, Joe? Projections?
==================
BetMGM-Always check with the bookies. They never let personal feelings affect their judgement.
JoeBrady
Sewald-I have no idea who you are, but you can always avail yourself of the mute button.
YankeesBleacherCreature
@JoeB While true, the bookmakers don’t make those dynamic odds/lines, the market does. Their only interest is paying both sides as close to 50/50 as possible while maximizing their commissions take. In the long run, betting on predominant favorites is a money-losing proposition.
JoeBrady
Bets like these are sucker bets. In the SB, they’d like something close to 50/50. On a sucker bet like this, they only want volume.
But they do try to keep it somewhat realistic. Crochet is #2 because of his 2024 numbers. Except for Skubal (and excepting injury risks), no one is a close 2nd to Crochet.
Lugo was 2nd in the AL in bWAR and CY, and imo, Crochet is a lot better. In 32 starts, he only had 5 bad games, and 4 mediocre games. In 15 games of 5 innings or more, he only allowed more than 2 runs once.
SewaldSwansonSwoon
Half a season means nothing.
ghostofmookiebetts
Seward- Right? His 2024 numbers show that he couldn’t pitch well even on limited innings in the second half. How can a guy who hasn’t proven anything be considered #2? It’s absurd…
SewaldSwansonSwoon
Also, it’s wild how he gets anointed, to use your very appropriate term, while other pitchers with only half a season of success are labeled as big question marks. Seemingly MLBTR has forgotten that success can be fleeting.