Projecting Red Sox dream 2025 rotation after Garrett Crochet blockbuster
The Boston Red Sox turned their offseason around in an instant, closing the Winter Meetings with a blockbuster deal for Chicago White Sox lefty Garrett Crochet. Before Wednesday, Craig Breslow had put himself squarely on the hot seat, whiffing on Juan Soto and watching Blake Snell and Max Fried land with the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees, respectively. Now, though, things feel a whole lot different: In Crochet, Boston has landed a pitcher with legitimate ace upside, one under team control for two more very cost-effective years — and they didn't even have to touch their top three prospects (or Triston Casas and Wilyer Abreu) to do it.
The deal offered some much-needed proof that Breslow and owner John Henry really were willing to get aggressive in the name of building a contender in 2025. Now, though, is no time to rest on their laurels. The Yankees are desperate after missing out on Soto, and the Baltimore Orioles have the ammunition to make a big move of their own. With how rugged the AL East figures to be next year, and how tough the Dodgers and Mets are shaping up in the NL, Boston needs to keep adding if it wants to keep up.
So, with that in mind, let's take a look at what the team's dream rotation might look like by offseason's end. Now that Crochet is in tow, it's time to start thinking really big, and there's still plenty of money left to spend.
For more news and rumors, check out MLB Insider Robert Murray’s work onThe Baseball Insiders podcast, subscribe to The Moonshot, our weekly MLB newsletter, and join the discord to get the inside scoop between now and the MLB offseason.
Red Sox dream rotation after Garrett Crochet trade also includes Corbin Burnes
Rank | Player |
|---|---|
1 | Corbin Burnes |
2 | Garrett Crochet |
3 | Tanner Houck |
4 | Brayan Bello |
5 | Lucas Giolito |
6 | Garrett Whitlock |
A report from Jon Heyman hinted that the trade for Crochet might cool Boston's pursuit of Burnes, but why exactly should that be the case? The lefty isn't making much money at all over the next two seasons, and the Red Sox could use one more sure thing at the top of their rotation — a no-doubt ace to pair with Crochet and offer some insurance in case he gets hurt again, or in case Lucas Giolito's recovery goes sideways, or in case Kutter Crawford or Brayan Bello don't take the leaps the team is hoping for.
Burnes would be the best possible use of that Soto-sized bag of cash, far more so than someone like, say, Alex Bregman, or any of the other position players left on a thin market. Of course, if Boston does sign the former Cy Young winner, that would give them some flexibility to swing a trade for a corner outfield bat or a middle infielder. Why not flip Crawford to the Chicago Cubs, for example, in a trade for Nico Hoerner? Or use him as part of a deal to land Kyle Tucker from the Houston Astros? Make Burnes an offer he can't refuse, and suddenly the possibilities are endless.
Not only would a top three of Burnes, Crochet and Tanner Houck be hell to deal with in a short playoff series, but Bello, Giolito and Garrett Whitlock still give Boston plenty of depth behind them. The Red Sox checked a big box with this move, but we still need to see Henry spend some of his money before we fully buy in.
feed