Garrett Crochet hadn’t gone eight innings since his first start during his collegiate days at the University of Tennessee. The recently-extended Boston Red Sox ace rewarded his team for that commitment Tuesday night.
Crochet tossed eight brilliant innings of shutout ball with just four hits allowed, with a walk and eight strikeouts. The Red Sox lefty played the part of a frontline starter and dominated a quality American League East opponent against the Baltimore Orioles.
Crochet went eight innings for the first time in his MLB career and marked just the third such start for the Red Sox dating back to the start of last season.
“I was just in control leading up to that point,” Crochet told reporters, per NESN’s postgame coverage. “My first start in college, I went eight, and I haven’t sniffed it since, so it’s funny. Felt really good.”
Crochet sported impressive stuff during his time at Tennessee. His college coach Tony Vitello spoke to NESN.com in December following the blockbuster Red Sox trade and reflected on how eye-popping Crochet had been on the mound.
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“It was exactly what you wanted,” Vitello said. “For a lack of a better word, it was like ‘(expletive) you’ stuff … It really would’ve been the only year since we’ve been at Tennessee where we had a Friday guy where it’s like, ‘This dude might stick it on you for eight innings.’”
Crochet set the tone on the mound for the Red Sox to win their first game since Opening Day. Boston is 2-0 in Crochet’s starts and he certainly intends on living up to the responsibilities of an ace.
“I like to think I can fall under that category of a guy that can be a stopper,” Crochet said.
“He kind of sets his own expectations,” Vitello said. “Not in an arrogant way. He doesn’t want to let anybody down. He’s carried that weight always with him. As he’s getting older, I’m sure he’s getting better at managing that. I realize what team he’s going to play for and what market and what expectation. I think he’s self-managing and self-sufficient in that area. … He’s going to want the ball in the most difficult situations.”
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