New Boston Red Sox ace Garrett Crochet was five outs away from history against his former team Sunday. Crochet took a no-hitter into the eighth inning against the Chicago White Sox at Rate Field (GameTracker) when second baseman Chase Meidroth found a hole through the left side of the infield with a ground-ball single.
How did the White Sox acquire Mr. Meidroth? In the Crochet trade with the Red Sox last December, of course. Here is his history-ruining single:
The single ended Crochet’s no-hit bid and also his afternoon. He was dominant, striking out 11 and getting 17 swings and misses in 7 1/3 innings. The only other batter to reach base against Crochet was Brooks Baldwin’s, who had a lead-off walk in the sixth inning. Crochet quickly retired the next three hitters to keep the no-hit chance intact.
So many no-hit bids feature that one great defensive play to save it, but not this one. According to Statcast, the White Sox put just one ball in play with better than a 50/50 chance of being a hit based on exit velocity and launch angle against Crochet, and that was Jacob Amaya’s third-inning line drive right at center fielder Ceddanne Rafaela. Meidroth’s single had a 47% hit probability.
Four starts into the season, Crochet has been everything the Red Sox expected when they sent four prospects, including Meidroth and their two recent first-round picks (Kyle Teel and Braden Montgomery) to Chicago. Sunday’s masterpiece gives him a 1.38 ERA in 26 innings, during which he’s allowed only 15 hits and eight walks. He’s struck out 28.
Crochet’s no-hit bid was the longest in baseball in the early days of the new season. Before Sunday, no pitcher had taken a no-hitter into the seventh inning this year, and only three took a no-hitter into the sixth.
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