Red Sox Insider ‘Can’t See’ Team Allowing Garrett Crochet to Pitch In WBC

The Boston Red Sox have to be happy with their decision to trade for pitcher Garrett Crochet this past winter.

Although the team did give up some significant future talent to acquire him from the Chicago White Sox, including top catching prospect Kyle Teel, Crochet has been everything they might have hoped. The southpaw has an American League-best 2.24 ERA in 23 starts so far and leads all of the majors with 13 wins and more than 148 innings so far.

He has been durable and received his second straight All-Star nod this year and looks like he could be a steal for the franchise after he signed a six-year, $170 million extension earlier this season.

And as Crochet emerges as one of the best hurlers in the sport, he’s surely grabbing the attention of Team USA as it assembles a roster for next year’s World Baseball Classic.

“Obviously, it would be a huge honor,” Crochet said of potentially being asked to join the team, according to Chris Cotillo of MassLive. “I’d hope the organization would view it as an honor as well. If I was asked, I’d definitely enjoy participating and I’d love to participate.”

But while Crochet sees the international tournament as an intriguing opportunity, the Red Sox are expected to see it differently. Historically, Team USA has had a hard time convincing top pitchers to participate in the event, as it raises their chances of being hurt and adds some competitive innings totals to their arms.

Though he’s proven to be resilient since becoming a starter last season, Crochet has a significant injury history from earlier in his career. And the Red Sox just made a long-term investment in him. As a result, the team might deny him the honor of joining Team USA.

“Crochet has said he’d like to be a part of it, but I can’t see the Sox signing off — given the number of arm injuries that tend to show up in spring training and Crochet’s importance to the franchise,” MassLive’s Sean McAdam wrote. “Traditionally, the Red Sox have seemed to discourage participation — the last Sox player to take part in the WBC was Shane Victorino in 2013.”

Given his sustained success this season, Crochet is surely drawing interest from Team USA. And it sounds like he’s ready to accept an invitation, though his time will probably intervene.

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