Red Sox's Risky Garrett Crochet Decision Could Determine Playoff Fate

As the Boston Red Sox entered the final week of the regular season, manager Alex Cora made a bold decision.

All along, the Red Sox were slated to use their top three starting pitchers in their Tuesday to Thursday series against the first-place Toronto Blue Jays. Lucas Giolito, Brayan Bello, and Garrett Crochet will each take the ball in a massive pressure situation.

However, rather than maintaining the status quo the Sox have had throughout the second half, Cora is rolling the dice.

Red Sox tinkering with rotation

Sep 18, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox pitcher Brayan Bello (66) throws a pitch against the Athletics in the first inning at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images | David Butler II-Imagn Images

According to Sean McAdam of MassLive, Cora is flipping Crochet and Bello for the final two games of the Blue Jays series. Crochet will now throw Wednesday on four days' rest, while Bello will go Thursday on six days' rest.

“That gives Bello a breather,” said Cora, per McAdam, “and keeps Garrett in line for that one (thanks to Monday’s off-day) and hopefully, for our big one (Game 1 of the Wild Card Series).”

There are countless implications of the decision, but let's try to break down the most important ones.

With struggling veteran Max Scherzer pitching on Wednesday for the Blue Jays, Cora is betting big on the Red Sox winning that one with their ace on the mound. The slumping Bello is then slated to oppose Shane Bieber, who has thrown the ball well for Toronto, on Thursday.

Crochet has been far better all season on five days' rest (3.58 ERA) than four (2.27 ERA). This would, however, give him five days to rest before Game 1 of the Wild Card Series if Boston can get there.

Is it worth the risk of minimizing Crochet's rest, though, to give Bello an extra day to steady himself? The latter owns a 5.85 ERA in four September starts thus far after putting up a sub-three mark in each of the three previous months.

Lastly, though Cora may not want to say so out loud, there could perhaps be a slim chance that if he's needed, Crochet could come back to pitch Sunday in Game 162 on three days' rest if the Red Sox need a win. The Detroit Tigers could have Cy Young favorite Tarik Skubal on the bump that day, depending on their own clinching scenarios.

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