Red Sox's $170M Ace Turned Down WBC in Favor of World Series Pursuit

A decision Sox fans can't complain about...

Feb 26, 2026; Fort Myers, Florida, USA; Boston Red Sox pitcher Garrett Crochet (35) throws a pitch in the first inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at JetBlue Park at Fenway South. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn Images | Jim Rassol-Imagn Images

The hype around playing for one's country in the World Baseball Classic, particularly Team USA, has increased dramatically from last time the event was held in 2023.

Team USA's pitching staff showed up to the Classic locked and loaded with the two reigning Cy Young Award winners. But the hurler who most would agree was the third-best in the majors last year made it a point not to show up.

Boston Red Sox ace Garrett Crochet, one season into a six-year, $170 million extension, decided early in the offseason that he wouldn't participate. As the WBC has captivated audiences, the 26-year-old revealed recently why he was so confident in that decision.

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Why no Crochet in WBC

Crochet, who tossed an American League-high 205 1/3 innings last season, said Monday that the decision was entirely his own to sit out of the WBC, as he prioritizes trying to win a World Series for the Red Sox.

“Having a daughter was part of it, but it was just like, I want to have a normal Spring Training coming off the highest workload I've ever had,” said Crochet, per Ian Browne of MLB.com. “I don't want to get going too early when the plan is to pitch until November.”

When he made his promise to chief baseball officer Craig Breslow and manager Alex Cora that he wouldn't participate, Crochet devised a fairly simple strategy to avoid feeling left out of the fun: tuning out of the WBC altogether.

“I haven't really been watching, to be honest,” Crochet told Browne. “I'll watch it when it is on in the clubhouse, but I’m not really worried about it. I told Brez and AC that I wasn't going to do it. So from the moment I said that, I didn’t really (think about it) anymore.”

Crochet took the WBC off the table before it even became an option, but it's fairly obvious a job would have been his if he'd wanted it. And though that attitude might be a hit to the viability of the event becoming as big as the Olympics or World Cup, Red Sox fans have to be glad the lefty thought that way.