The Red Sox have made their big move, and Garrett Crochet now has to change his (sox).
The Red Sox have agreed to a trade to land Grochet from Chicago, according to multiple reports. The Boston Globe was the first to report the news.
The Globe reported Red Sox prospect Kyle Teel was part of the deal, something confirmed by USA TODAY’s Bob Nightengale. NESN’s Tom Caron confirmed Teel’s inclusion.
According to multiple reports, the Red Sox are trading a package of prospects highlighted by Teel and 2024 first-round pick Braden Montgomery.
Red Sox acquire: Garrett Crochet
White Sox acquire: Kyle Teel, Braden Montgomery, Chase Meidroth, Wikelman Gonzalez
News of the deal comes a day after one report indicated the Yankees and Mets were the most aggressive teams in their efforts to land Crochet.
It’s a much-needed move for the Red Sox, who have missed out on pitching in free agency to this point. Crochet is just 25 years old and is coming off the best season of his young career. He started 32 games for the lowly White Sox, going 6-12 with a 3.58 ERA that speaks to how good he was despite the win-loss record. Crochet made the American League All-Star team on his way to finishing the season with 209 strikeouts in just 146 innings. The 12.9 punchouts per nine innings was a rate that ranked among baseball’s best pitchers.
Crochet is especially valuable because of his contract situation. He’s under contract for two more seasons at a manageable rate, although it wouldn’t be surprising — and probably would be smart — to see the Sox try to extend the left-hander.
It’s a steep price to pay for the Red Sox. Teel, Boston’s first-round pick in 2023, was considered part of the organization’s quartet of top prospects alongside Marcelo Mayer, Roman Anthony and Kristian Campbell. As the club’s most recent first-round pick, Montgomery could have joined that group, too.
