The last thing the Boston Red Sox faithful needed was an injury scare. But on Sunday afternoon, they watched ace Garrett Crochet get struck in the nose by a comebacker from Carlos Correa in the fourth inning of the team's game against the Minnesota Twins. Even though the baseball made contact with his nose, Crochet managed to stay in the game until the end of the fifth inning.
While speaking with reporters after the game, Crochet said that the line drive "barely grazed" his nose and that he had no intention of leaving the game.
“It barely grazed me, honestly,” said Crochet, h/t MassLive's Chris Cotillo. “Just more shaken up by the initial impact than anything. I immediately went to touch my nose to see if it felt normal. It was numb at first, just from the initial impact. But it was fine.”
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Garrett Crochet downplays getting struck in nose by line drive
The good news for Red Sox fans is that Crochet was fine, despite being shocked by the initial impact. But to hear that he had no desire to leave the game, that has to increase the fanbase's respect for their new No. 1 starting pitcher, who they acquired in a trade.
Crochet pitched five full innings against the Twins, where he allowed one earned run on four hits while striking out six batters and issuing two walks. The Red Sox lost 5-4 after Garrett Whitlock blew a save and Justin Slaten allowed two earned runs on three hits in the eighth inning.
On the year, Crochet owns a 2.02 ERA, a 1.06 WHIP, a 3-2 win-loss record, 56 strikeouts, and 20 walks in 49.0 innings (eight starts).
Based on Crochet's comments, he's not in danger of missing any time. But if there wasn't any more reason for Red Sox fans to root for Crochet, they just got one.