The White Sox’ Garrett Crochet throws in the first inning of the Opening Day loss to the Detroit Tigers at Guaranteed Rate Field.
Quinn Harris/Getty Images
If this is what the Garrett Crochet starting pitcher experience is going to be like, more of that, please, the White Sox ask.
Pitching six innings — more than most everyone anticipated in the left-hander’s first career start — Crochet was exceptional with eight strikeouts, no walks and one run allowed against the Tigers on Opening Day Thursday.
If only the White Sox had it in them to muster more than three hits against Tigers lefty Tarik Skubal, who held them scoreless for six innings in a 1-0 loss, taking the air out of a less than capacity Opening Day crowd of 33,420 at Guaranteed Rate Field.
It was a great day for Sox pitching and defense.
It was a bad day for a Sox offense, which didn’t plant a baserunner past first base.
“Definitely feels like a punch in the gut,” said first baseman Andrew Vaughn, who had one of the Sox’ three singles. “Garrett threw the ball really well. All our pitchers did. They really chucked it. We just couldn’t string anything together.”
Crochet strung six innings together, scoffing with each of his 87 throws (61 for strikes) at those who called him an opener because of his health history and absence of starts since college. It was a big moment for the big lefty, who bulldogged his way to becoming a starter during the offseason and an impressive spring training.
“I’ve been in the big moment before, obviously nothing as great as this,” Crochet said. “But it was nice to just give my team a fighting chance. I felt like as long as I was doing that I was able to keep my emotions under control.”
The crowd’s favorite boo target, former Cub Javier Baez, singled on an 0-2 fastball leading off the third, stole second, advanced to third on a ground out to the right side and scored on a sacrifice fly by Andy Ibanez.
Baez, booed on the South Side apparently because he used to be a Cub, played up to the catcalls as he rounded first, pointing to the crowd and opening his hands next to the ear flaps of his helmet.
“When you get booed, you don’t want to suck because they’re going to do it louder,” Baez told reporters.
Crochet was worthy of cheers, however. He spotted a 96-98 mph fastball and sharp slider that in the later innings looked even better than what he featured in the dry Arizona air during spring training. He started his outing with a strikeout of Ibanez and finishing it with a whiff of Matt Vierling to complete a perfect sixth.
“He has electric stuff,” catcher Martin Maldonado said. “He was attacking the hitter with his fastball and the slider for a strike when he needed it.”
Crochet was the ninth pitcher in the last 110 years to make his first start on Opening Day.
“This outing doesn’t shock me,” manager Pedro Grifol said. “It doesn’t shock me.
“Everybody was talking about four innings, five innings, and all of a sudden he comes out there and is toeing the rubber in the sixth inning.”
The Sox backed Crochet with a crisp defensive effort, but Luis Robert Jr. in the first, Vaughn in the second and Eloy Jimenez in the fourth were the only hits against Skubal. The Sox did not walk, they struck out 11 times and their last 17 batters were retired in order. After Skubal, three Tigers relievers held the Sox hitless in final three innings. Jason Foley struck out Yoan Moncada and Robert to end the game.
“We had a ton of energy, obviously Opening Day,” Grifol said. “But we’re going to catch the baseball and we’re going to pitch it. We’ve just got to find ways to claw out some runs and win these types of ballgames. These are the games you’ve got to win, you’ve got to find a way to win it if you want to be really good. And we’ll get there.”