Garrett Crochet has dazzled in the first half of his first season as a full-time starter.
The White Sox's lefty quickly became their ace after they traded Dylan Cease to the Padres just before the season. He's already been awarded his first All-Star nod for his impressive efforts this season.
And other players around the league, including rookie phenom Paul Skenes, recognize the type of season he's having.
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"I’m not great at following people around the league but I definitely know what Garrett is doing," Skenes told reporters before the game. "It’s fun to watch. He’s unlike any other pitcher I’ve ever seen in terms of how he moves.
"I’m a crossfire righty, crossfire low slot righty. He’s a crossfire lefty, but he has something like seven feet of extension and also throws 99 to 100. It’s tough for hitters."
Skenes is recording one of the most impressive rookie campaigns in MLB history. He's just the fifth rookie in MLB history to start in an All-Star game, along with earning his All-Star nod from the fewest games (11) in history.
It's the ultimate compliment from arguably the league's brightest star to know he's aware of Crochet's season, especially knowing he's not particularly the most baseball-heavy follower. Calling him "unlike" any other pitcher he's seen is truly giving Crochet his flowers for the season.
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And it's well-deserved. This season, Crochet is holding a 3.08 ERA and 0.968 WHIP through 19 starts (105.1 innings) with a 6-6 pitching record. His 146 strikeouts and 12.5 strikeouts per nine innings currently leads MLB.
The White Sox are trying to load-manage Crochet, who underwent Tommy John surgery in 2022 and rehabbed leading up to the 2024 season.
Crochet's final start before the All-Star break on Friday will be shortened, Pedro Grifol said before the game. And Crochet will pitch the fifth game after the All-Star break to give him the maximum amount of rest possible, which equates to a 10-day break.
The White Sox are trying to navigate his first year as a full-time starter partnered with his first season after Tommy John surgery. Unfortunately, there's no exact science to mapping that out, but they're confident in the plan.
"There's no blueprint for this. We're going through this together," Grifol said.