Red Sox fans have been staring at the calendar for weeks waiting on Garrett Crochet, and now there's an actual update to chew on. MLB Trade Rumors put out word that Crochet is targeting a return from the injured list by the playoffs, which is either great news or a mildly terrifying tease depending on how your stomach handles hope in late July.
MLB Trade Rumors dropped the update that got everyone in Boston refreshing their phones.
Some background for anyone who tuned out during the shoulder saga: Crochet landed on the 15-day IL back on April 29 with left shoulder inflammation, and things got worse before they got better when a left lat strain surfaced during his recovery, pushing him to the 60-day IL in early June. He's talked about "getting close to throwing" at various points, but as recently as this month he still hadn't been cleared to actually start a throwing program, with the Red Sox saying the shoulder and lat were "improving" without being game-ready.
Here's why the timing matters beyond just missing his fastball: the Red Sox signed Crochet to a 6-year, $170 million extension that includes an opt-out after the 2030 season, but that opt-out reportedly disappears if he spends 120 consecutive days on the injured list. That checkpoint hits around Aug. 23, which not coincidentally lines up with a homestand against the Giants that's been floated as a realistic return window for him at Fenway.
So this isn't just a fantasy-baseball storyline or a bullpen-innings math problem for October. It's a guy on a $170 million extension racing a very specific date on the calendar that could quietly reshape his own contract leverage down the line, on top of trying to get his club's rotation whole again for a playoff push.
For Boston, getting an ace back for a postseason run changes everything about how the rotation stacks up, especially if he's throwing anywhere close to the form that made him worth trading a full farm system package for in the first place. For Crochet, the stakes are just as personal. Everyone will be watching that Fenway homestand a little closer now that there's a number attached to it.