Red Sox's Updated Payroll, Rotation for 2025 MLB Roster After Garrett Crochet Trade
December 11, 2024
After striking out on some of their initial free-agent targets, the Boston Red Sox decided to go the trade route to address their need for a starting pitcher.
Per Julian McWilliams of the Boston Globe, the Red Sox are expected to acquire Garrett Crochet from the Chicago White Sox in a package that includes top prospect Kyle Teel.
ESPN's Jeff Passan added "multiple prospects" will be going back to the White Sox in the deal.
Even though the Red Sox had been playing in the deep end of the free-agent pool with offers to players like Juan Soto and Max Fried, trading for Crochet actually saves them a ton of money for now unless they sign him to a long-term extension.
Crochet is projected to earn $2.9 million next season in his second year of arbitration. The Red Sox estimated payroll in 2025 is at $148 million before factoring in Crochet's salary, so they are still only around $151 million with plenty of quality free agents still available.
Projected 2025 Red Sox Pitching Rotation
- No. 1 starter: Garrett Crochet, LHP
- No. 2 starter: Tanner Houck, RHP
- No. 3 starter: Brayan Bello, RHP
- No. 4 starter: Kutter Crawford, RHP
- No. 5 starter: Lucas Giolito, RHP
- Closer: Liam Hendriks, RHP
- Setup: Aroldis Chapman, LHP
- Setup: Justin Slaten, RHP
- Reliever: Greg Weissert, RHP
- Reliever: Brennan Bernardino, LHP
- Reliever: Michael Fulmer, RHP
- Reliever: Justin Wilson, LHP
- Reliever: Garrett Whitlock, RHP
It's clear from the makeup of Boston's rotation why the team was pursuing Fried as a free agent before he agreed to an eight-year, $218 million deal with the New York Yankees, then why Crochet became a priority via trade.
The Red Sox top four projected starters after Crochet are all right-handed. It's not necessarily a bad thing to have a full rotation of same-handed pitchers if they are all good enough to get out hitters from both sides of the plate.
Kutter Crawford and Tanner Houck did that very well last season. Crawford held lefty hitters to a .675 OPS in 394 plate appearances. Houck was even better with a .589 OPS against left-handed hitters.
Brayan Bello has struggled in this area throughout his career. Lefties have posted an .828 OPS against him in three seasons, compared to .693 for right-handed hitters.
Crochet was equally effective against lefties (.651 OPS) and righties (.640 OPS) for the White Sox in 2024. He also gives the Red Sox a much-needed pitcher who can miss bats.
Lucas Giolito, who didn't pitch in a regular-season game last season after having internal brace surgery on his right elbow in March, figures to be in the rotation mix at some point early in 2025. How effective he will be is another story after missing a full year and posting a 4.89 ERA in 63 starts from 2022-23.
Garrett Whitlock, who also had the internal brace procedure on his pitching elbow in May, is poised to at least return as reliever next season. There's a possibility he could return to the rotation depending on how he looks and what the team needs, but they are at least going to go into 2025 with him pitching out of the bullpen.
Since Nick Pivetta is still available as a free agent, the Red Sox don't currently have a pitcher under contract who threw at least 60 innings and averaged more than one strikeout per inning.
Crochet has averaged more than one strikeout per inning in three of his four MLB seasons, though one of those seasons was in 2020 when he only appeared in five games two months after being drafted.
Among all pitchers with at least 140 innings pitched last season, Crochet's 12.9 strikeouts per nine innings were the most in MLB. In a distant second place was a name very familiar to Red Sox fans: Chris Sale (11.4).
The Red Sox will certainly be hoping that Crochet turns into the next Sale for them. No one was expecting Sale to have the year he did in 2024 with the Atlanta Braves after being acquired from Boston during the offseason. He only appeared in 31 games over his final four years with the Red Sox, then proceeded to win the NL Cy Young award in Atlanta.
If Crochet gives the Red Sox anything close to that level of production in 2025 and beyond, this trade will be a huge win for a franchise that is in desperate need of some positive vibes after missing the playoffs in each of the past three years.
