The Boston Red Sox pitching staff got a major boost ahead of Game 1 of the Wild Card series against the New York Yankees when 2025 American League Cy Young Award runner-up Garrett Crochet was activated from the injured list and added to the active roster. 

The start of the 2026 season was rough for Crochet, who posted a 6.30 ERA before landing on the injured list on April 29 with left shoulder inflammation. However, after throwing two live bullpen sessions in recent weeks, the 27-year-old could be a postseason X-factor for the Red Sox bullpen. 

In his first two seasons with the Chicago White Sox, Crochet pitched exclusively out of the bullpen, appearing in four postseason games. In those four appearances, Crochet allowed zero earned runs on five hits with six strikeouts and one walk over three innings pitched. 

Overall, Crochet posted a 2.71 ERA in 72 relief appearances in his career. 

That postseason success carried into 2025, as Crochet dominated the Yankees in Game 1 of the Wild Card series, allowing one earned run on four hits and striking out 11 over 7.2 innings. 

Despite Crochet’s return to the roster, it doesn't come without questions. Can he pitch multiple times in the series? What about back-to-back games? In those live bullpen sessions, his fastest four-seam fastball clocked in at 96 mph; is that his limit? 

During Monday afternoon’s media availability, Red Sox manager Chad Tracy told reporters that the two former questions remained undecided and would depend on how Crochet recovers from an initial appearance. 

Assuming Crochet is without limits, he could provide a massive boost to an already loaded, but slightly depleted bullpen. In the waning weeks of the season, the Red Sox lost Justin Slaten for the season and Tyron Guerrero for at least the first two rounds of the postseason. 

With an elite trio of Erik Miller, Garrett Whitlock, and Aroldis Chapman holding down the back end of games, Tracy can use Crochet in several situations, including as an early-inning fireman if starters falter or in mid-inning, high-leverage moments, helping bridge the gap between the starter and the bullpen trio. 

Of course, Crochet would be more valuable as a starter; however, his presence in the bullpen gives Tracy an elite option no other playoff team has in their pen: a Cy Young candidate. 

If the 27-year-old can return to even 80 percent of his 2025 form, he has the kind of arm that could swing a series in the Red Sox's favor. 

Payton Tolle (9-6, 3.03 ERA) gets the start for Boston opposite the likely American League Cy Young Award winner, Cam Schlittler (14-6, 1.95 ERA) for New York in Game 1 of the Wild Card series on Tuesday night. First pitch from Yankee Stadium is set for 8:00 p.m. ET.

Zach Coe and David Azer are back on the 'Entering Kenmore' Podcast, previewing the Red Sox' Wild Card matchup with the Yankees. Check it out wherever you get your podcasts or in the YouTube player below.