Garrett Crochet wasn't at his best but still gave Red Sox enough in win over Yankees

New York Times

3 hours ago

NEW YORK — Even on a night when Garrett Crochet gave up a season high in runs, the Boston Red Sox's ace left-hander still gave his team a chance to win.
In a maddening season for the Red Sox, the 25-year-old has been one of the main reasons to watch as his team has seesawed its way through 66 games.
Saturday, Crochet struck out New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge three times, a feat only two other starters have managed this season. And though Crochet gave up five runs on six hits and a walk over six innings, he struck out nine as the Red Sox offense did its part in a 10-7 win.
Nasty. pic.twitter.com/xAeznOZXPJ
— Red Sox (@RedSox) June 8, 2025
'He gave us what we needed — forget the line,' manager Alex Cora said. 'There were some plays defensively that we didn't make that put him in a bad spot. We needed six (innings), regardless. We'll take it.'
Crochet's nine strikeouts gave him 110 on the season, the most in the majors. Only four other starters have as many as 100 punchouts.
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The Red Sox took an early lead in the second inning when struggling rookie Kristian Campbell slapped an RBI single to right to give his team a 1-0 lead.
But the Yankees retook the lead in the next half-inning, thanks in part to some shoddy defense. Crochet gave up a hard grounder to the right side that should have been Campbell's ball at second. But inexperienced first baseman Romy Gonzalez dove for the ball, leaving first base open, and Crochet didn't have time to cover the bag, allowing the runner to reach on an infield single. Crochet issued a walk, and then Austin Wells clubbed a three-run homer to put New York up 3-1.
Two innings later, after the Red Sox had pushed ahead 8-3, another tough defensive play put Crochet in a bad spot. Campbell got caught flat-footed on a groundball he could have easily fielded, as he broke left instead of right. The ball shot into right field. Two batters later, Wells tagged Crochet again for a run-scoring double. A groundout added a fifth run to Crochet's line, pulling New York within 8-5.
Entering Saturday, Crochet had allowed four runs twice in 13 starts, limiting opponents to two or fewer runs in his 11 other contests.
'Outside of three, four pitches, I felt like my line didn't reflect how I threw the ball tonight,' Crochet said. 'Felt good, got my feet wet in the first rivalry game I've been a part of.'
Though it wasn't Crochet's cleanest line, his at-bats against Judge highlighted his night.
In the first, he got Judge to strike out swinging on a 96.9 mph four-seamer. In the third, he pounded Judge with four-seamers before freezing him with a sweeper on the outside part of the plate. In the fifth, he got Judge for a third time, this time on an elevated four-seamer.
Judge had struck out only three times in a game this season on four occasions before Saturday. Only two starters had managed a trio of strikeouts against Judge: the San Diego Padres' Dylan Cease and the Arizona Diamondbacks' Zac Gallen.
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'It felt good,' Crochet said. 'The time is going to come. I face him again next Friday (in Boston), I believe, so I've got to do it again. That's the great thing about this game. Just had his number today, that's all.'
Too many times this season, the Red Sox have wasted a strong effort from Crochet, but the offense bailed him out Saturday.
After Wells' three-run homer, the Red Sox responded with five runs of their own in the top of the third.
Abraham Toro hit a bloop single to center with the bases loaded to pull within 3-2 before Trevor Story, in an awful stretch at the plate this season, hit a hard liner to left, driving in three runs for the 5-3 lead. Campbell added his second RBI of the night with a single to center to make it 6-3.
Gonzalez hit a two-run homer in the fourth to make it 8-3 before New York pulled back within 8-5 in the bottom of the inning.
Bad news for that baseball. 💥 pic.twitter.com/GHb1FBgjSr
— Red Sox (@RedSox) June 8, 2025
Reliever Justin Wilson made things interesting in the eighth, throwing 24 pitches, just nine for strikes, and walking two batters before a two-out, two-run double made it an 8-7 game. Wilson fell behind the dangerous Wells 2-0 but came back to strike him out on an elevated fastball with the tying run on second.
Story capped a three-hit night with a two-run single in the ninth to give the Red Sox some breathing room before they closed it out.
Story sends a pair home! pic.twitter.com/DPDBl1OlA8
— Red Sox (@RedSox) June 8, 2025
'It's always nice to see results,' Story said. 'I've felt much better about how I'm feeling in the box and the quality of the at-bat and the swings that I'm getting off.'
The Red Sox need to find ways to win on the days Crochet isn't starting, but they'll take any wins they can come by at this point in the season.