Garrett Crochet put rocky first inning behind him to deliver another dominant start for the Red Sox

Despite some early setbacks against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Garrett Crochet was the Red Sox’s outstanding pitcher on Saturday and once again delivered.

The Dodgers got ahead of Crochet right away, whereas many of the teams he faced in 2025 found it difficult to score early in his outings. A difficult night at Fenway Park began when Teoscar Hernandez and Shohei Ohtani both hit home runs off Crochet in the first inning.

However, Crochet got into the swing of things in the second and third innings, and he played a big part in the Red Sox’s 4-2 victory over the Dodgers. Crochet struck out ten batters in six complete innings of work. Despite getting hit eight times more than usual, he managed to keep the Dodgers off the scoreboard following his rough opening inning.

After the victory, Alex Cora praised the lefty’s versatility.

He performed a fantastic job. Cora informed reporters that he is adaptable enough to alter his strategy during the evening. Even in the second inning, there were some loud outs, suggesting that they were on the fastball early on. Then he calmed down and provided for our needs.

After a difficult first inning, Garrett Crochet dialed it in for a big game, according to Alex Cora:He is adaptable enough to alter his strategy as the evening goes on. Early on, they seemed to be on fastball. Even in the second inning, there were a few booming outs. But hepic after that.https://tweet.com/n2ZM7sH5Pv

Crochet informed reporters that he didn’t alter his strategy significantly, at least not after the first inning, in spite of his manager’s remark. His logic was straightforward, offering a tiny window into the kind of thinking that probably enabled him to put out the initial misfires.

Crochet half-jokingly remarked, “I made two bad pitches,” adding that the FOX broadcast forced him to watch those pitches several times during the evening.

Throughout the night, the Dodgers were unable to capitalize on any of his offerings, but they were opportunistic enough to make him pay for them.

Crochet has a 2.23 ERA and has tossed 175 strikeouts in 22 appearances. Crochet is still in a close battle with Tarik Skubal for the American League Cy Young award, but if he defeats the Detroit Tigers star, he will become the first Red Sox pitcher to win the honor since Rick Porcello in 2016.

When the Red Sox acquired the 26-year-old in the offseason, Crochet has been all they could have imagined. He also contributed to Boston’s much-needed victory over the defending World Series winners on Saturday.