Before the White Sox decided to trade Garrett Crochet, there were a few factors to consider. They had to consider the timeline to contention for their team, the value of Crochet at the time of the trade, how Crochet's arm would hold up, and the value of a possible extension before his contract was up.
The White Sox clearly decided that the offseason was the perfect time to trade him, as they were able to get fantastic value in return, as the players they received in return are already raking in AAA. However, the White Sox must have known what Crochet was looking for in terms of value in an extension, as he just got PAID.
According to Jeff Passan, the Boston Red Sox and Crochet are in agreement on a six year mega extension.
BREAKING: Left-hander Garrett Crochet and the Boston Red Sox are in agreement on a six-year, $170 million contract extension, sources tell ESPN. The deal starts in 2026 and includes an opt-out after 2030. By far the largest deal ever for a pitcher with 4+ years of service.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) April 1, 2025
Passan continues to say that the value of the deal will reach 170 million dollars for Crochet, which averages about 28 million dollars a year. On top of that, Passan notes it was the largest deal ever for a pitcher with 4+ years of service time, passing up Jacob DeGrom's five year, 137 million dollar extension.
I'm sure that the White Sox had extension conversations with Crochet prior to the trade and knew that this was the range of money he was looking for. Once they figured that was the number, he was as good as gone, as the White Sox have never given out that type of money before.
In fact, this deal for Crochet is almost 100 million dollars more than the largest contract given out to a player in White Sox history, as Andrew Benintendi currently holds the record with his 75 million dollar deal.
With the current state of the White Sox, they were never going to shell out that kind of money for Crochet. Crochet earned himself some money with the way he pitched last year and now he cashes in with the Boston Red Sox on a long term deal that will allow him to opt out in his age 31 season.
According to Spotrac, Crochet's AAV of 28 million would slot him as the 7th highest paid starting pitcher in all of Major League Baseball in 2026. While this is a fantastic deal for Crochet, the Red Sox better hope that he continues to ascend as a pitcher, because if he does, it could be a steal. However, if Crochet continues to deal with injures like his first four years with the White Sox, this deal could turn out to be rough for the Red Sox.
There is no doubt that Crochet has all the talent in the world and deserved a nice extension, however, with just 224 major league innings since making his debut in 2020, there is some risk with a contract of this size. Since the White Sox were never going to pay that kind of money, they made the right choice in trading Crochet when they did.
Congratulations to Crochet for cashing in and hopefully he can continue to stay on the mound for the Red Sox. Only time will tell how the contract will look by the time it's over, but with contract values continue to rise, it could be a steal for the Red Sox if everything goes right.
