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The Red Sox gave up a haul of prospects for Garrett Crochet, headlined by catcher Kyle Teel, who could be playing for the White Sox as early as this season. They didn’t necessarily make that sacrifice because they thought that the last two years of Crochet’s arbitration period were worth it on their own. They were also paying for the chance to sign the 25-year-old left-hander to a long-term contract extension. On Wednesday night, MassLive’s Chris Cotillo reported that preliminary dialog about an extension has begun between the Red Sox and Crochet’s representatives at agency CAA. At the moment, however, the main focus is on agreeing on a contract value for this year, as the arbitration deadline is today.
That could actually matter a great deal in terms of getting an extension done. Arbitration is an unpleasant experience, with the player’s representatives making a pitch for why their client should be paid a higher amount and the team’s making a pitch for why the player should be paid a lower amount. An independent arbitrator then chooses one of those numbers. Because of the adversarial nature, and because the amounts in question are miles below what the player is actually worth on the open market, it can get ugly. In extreme cases, the team’s presentation – in which they basically lay out a detailed case for why the player is worthless, sometimes to save as little as a few hundred thousand dollars – can have ugly side effects. Josh Hader said publicly that the process poisoned his relationship with the Brewers.
MLB Trade Rumors predicted that Crochet would end up with $2.9 million during the 2025 season, a fraction of what he’s worth. Avoiding arbitration could help build some goodwill and avoid acrimony going into serious extension negotiations, even if it means paying Crochet more right now. Besides, if Crochet does sign an extension, it will buy out his arbitration years for much more than even the highest possible figure he could make in arbitration, preempting the deal that the sides are currently working on. Right now, the name of the game is demonstrating that the team is serious.
That’s not to say that negotiations will be easy. Craig Breslow has yet to negotiate a big contract during his time leading the Red Sox. These negotiations could have a big effect on the future of the team and his legacy. Crochet’s future as a starter has some real concerns. He was a reliever coming up and missed the entire 2022 season due to Tommy John surgery. All 32 of his big-league starts came in 2024. He threw just 146 innings and pitched into the seventh just three times all season. He’s pitched like an ace, but the risk created by his short track record and injury history will limit his value. The two sides will have to balance that risk with his tremendous upside. By all indications, Crochet is acutely aware of this dynamic. That’s why he made it clear at the trade deadline that he intended to take care of his arm. He planned to pitch during the playoffs only if the team that traded for him agreed to an extension beforehand, which ended up killing interest in a midseason move. It’s hard to fault Crochet for protecting his future that way, considering that until 2024, the highest innings total of his career was 65, and it came when he was a 20-year-old sophomore at Tennessee in 2019.
There’s no guarantee that an extension will actually happen. Cotillo has said it’s “unclear if the sides have gotten close yet.” but for now, these are all good indications.
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