Garrett Crochet gets honest about his Opening Day start on Red Sox debut

Garrett Crochet's Boston Red Sox tenure started on a winning note after Boston defeated the Texas Rangers 5-2 on Opening Day at Globe Life Field on Thursday night.

Crochet was traded to Boston from the Chicago White Sox in the offseason as part of a deal involving Kyle Teel, Braden Montgomery, Chase Meidroth and Wikelman González.

While the former White Sox ace impressed with his new team in the Grapefruit League during spring, Crochet struggled early in his Red Sox debut against the Rangers.

Crochet struggled with his command early on his Opening Day start, allowing five hits, two runs, two walks and striking out four. Following his start, the All-Star shared his honest reaction to his performance:

"The first two innings really taxed my pitch count. I'm gonna walk away from today priding myself on the fact that I was able to be a lot more efficient there later in the outing."

The 25-year-old pitcher admitted he was trying to get the hitters to swing more in the first two innings, adding to his woes.

“It was a grinder day from the start,” Crochet said. “I felt like I struggled with consistent execution, maybe took a few too many shots in the first couple innings trying to get swing and miss.

Red Sox manager Alex Cora content with Garrett Crochet's Opening Day start

Garrett Crochet started his Red Sox tenure on the back of a career year with the White Sox in 2024. Crochet earned his first All-Star nod and finished with a 3.58 ERA, 209 strikeouts in 146 innings, earning him the AL Comeback Player of the Year.

While he was slugging on his Boston debut, manager Alex Cora was content with Crochet's start.

“He was good,” Cora noted. “A lot of cutters. Velo was OK. I think he found his fastball halfway through the outing. Of course, he wanted to keep going. We’re in the business of taking care of him. We have to do that. He did a good job.”

With just two seasons remaining on his contract, Garrett Crochet has been a subject of a contract extension with the Red Sox. However, according to the latest reports, chief baseball officer Craig Breslow has ruled out an extension for the ace for now. Crochet had reportedly set an Opening Day deadline for an extension.