Garrett Crochet remains sidelined as Red Sox surge into AL Wild Card race

What happened

Garrett Crochet has not pitched since April 25 due to shoulder problems and remains sidelined, per FanGraphs, even as the Boston Red Sox have staged one of the more improbable turnarounds in recent memory. The ace's absence has been a constant backdrop to a stretch that has carried Boston from the depths of the American League standings into genuine postseason contention.

Why it matters

The degree of difficulty here is worth sitting with for a moment. FanGraphs reported that four weeks ago the Red Sox stood at 32-46 — not merely the worst record in the AL at that point, but the franchise's worst record through 78 games since 1966, when the team went 28-50 through the same stretch. That is a long way to reach back for a comparable low point.

Since that nadir, Boston has gone 20-3, the best run in the major leagues over that span, per FanGraphs. The streak reached its most theatrical moment on Wednesday, when the Red Sox won the opener of a doubleheader against the Orioles at Fenway Park to claim their 15th consecutive victory, tying a franchise record set in 1946. The nightcap ended the run, but the broader arc remained intact: a team that looked finished has forced its way into the conversation.

What makes the run operationally remarkable is who has not been available for it. Crochet, the club's ace, has been out the entire time. Roman Anthony, per FanGraphs, has also been sidelined since May 4 due to multiple hand injuries. FanGraphs notes the team has pulled off this stretch despite missing both players — and the article indicates additional absences were part of the picture as well, though the published text was truncated before completing that accounting.

The managerial situation adds another layer. Per FanGraphs, Alex Cora's final game as manager was April 25 — the same day Crochet last pitched — after Cora and five coaches were let go following a 10-17 start. The team that has gone 20-3 is not the same team, in almost any meaningful sense, as the one that opened the year.

The numbers

Boston's record sits at 87-75 (.537), good for third place in the AL East, 11 games back of the division lead. The division race is no longer in play — FanGraphs lists the Red Sox as eliminated from that competition — but the Wild Card picture is a different matter entirely. Boston currently ranks second among AL Wild Card contenders, sitting +3.0 relative to the cut line. That is a meaningful cushion, not a white-knuckle situation, though the calendar and the schedule will have opinions about how long it holds.

The streak that carried them here ended at one loss entering this series.

Where the club stands

With the division mathematically closed off, the Wild Card is the only path, and at +3.0 above the cut line, Boston has built something worth protecting. The upcoming schedule offers a useful stress test: the Red Sox host the Toronto Blue Jays at Fenway Park for three games beginning Friday, July 25.

Patrick Sandoval is the listed probable for Boston on Friday against Trey Yesavage. Saturday brings a matchup that will draw attention well beyond Fenway — Sonny Gray for Boston against Dylan Cease for Toronto. Sunday closes the series with Ranger Suarez opposing Kevin Gausman.

That is a rotation that, on paper, reflects a club that has found some footing. Whether Crochet eventually rejoins it is the question that has been hanging over the organization since late April.

Is Crochet close to returning?

Per FanGraphs, Crochet remains sidelined. No timetable, target date, or indication of where he stands in a potential return process has been reported. The shoulder problems that kept him out beginning April 25 are the extent of what FanGraphs has published. As a pitcher, Crochet would be subject to the 15-day injured list minimum under general league rules, and a pitcher on a rehab assignment has up to 30 days before a roster decision is required — but none of those mechanics have been attached to Crochet's specific situation in the available reporting.

The honest answer to the question is that FanGraphs has not said, and nothing in the material supports further inference.

What we don't know yet

FanGraphs' account was truncated before completing its list of players Boston has been missing during the 20-3 run. The article notes the team has managed the streak "despite missing not only Crochet and Anthony, but also" — and ends there. Additional injury or roster context that may bear on how the club has constructed its pitching and lineup over this stretch is not available from the published reporting.

There is also no update on Roman Anthony's status. He has been out since May 4 with multiple hand injuries, per FanGraphs, but no timetable or indication of where his recovery stands has been reported.

And the central question — when, or whether, Crochet rejoins a rotation that is currently being asked to protect a Wild Card position — remains entirely open. The shoulder problems are documented. Everything else is silence.

What to watch

The Toronto series this weekend is the immediate focal point. At +3.0 above the Wild Card cut line, Boston has room to absorb a loss without a crisis, but a three-game series against a divisional opponent at home is exactly the kind of moment where that cushion either grows or quietly erodes.

Beyond the standings, the Crochet situation is the thread worth pulling. A rotation that has carried a 20-3 run without its ace is doing something right — but the postseason is a different kind of ask, and the shoulder that has kept Crochet out since April 25 remains the largest unresolved variable on the roster. When the reporting changes on that front, the calculus for Boston's October viability changes with it.

For now, the Red Sox are alive, they are in the field, and they are hosting the Blue Jays on Friday. Four weeks ago, none of that seemed remotely plausible.