Former Tennessee baseball standout Garrett Crochet was named a MLB All-Star on Sunday night after a fantastic first half of the season with the Chicago White Sox.
After missing the entire 2022 season and most of the 2023 season due to injuries, Crochet has exploded onto the MLB scene this season. Crochet spent his early seasons in the major leagues as a relief pitcher and this season is his first as a starting pitcher.
The left-handed pitcher is exceeding all expectations. Through his first 19 starts this season, Crochet has a 6-6 record, 3.08 ERA and 0.968 WHIP. In 105.1 innings pitched, Crochet’s struck out 146 batters while walking only 23.
Amongst all qualified pitchers, Crochet ranks 16th in the MLB in earned-run average and fifth in WHIP.
Crochet could be in for an interesting second half of the season. The White Sox (26-66) are the worst team in the entire MLB by a full six games. As one of the best starting pitchers in all of baseball, Crochet is viewed as a top candidate to be dealt at the trade deadline later this month.
More From RTI: Tennessee Infielder Dean Curley Named Freshman All-American
After spending the first half of his season with the worst team in baseball, Crochet could end up pitching in meaningful games in September and October.
Crochet was one of the first recruits to sign with Tony Vitello and Tennessee baseball, joining the Vols’ program in the summer of 2017 ahead of the 2018 season. The Ocean Springs, Mississippi native was one of the best arms on Tennessee’s 2019 team that returned to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 14 years, posting a 4.02 ERA and striking out 81 batters in 65 innings pitched.
The tall let-handed pitcher was going to be Tennessee’s ace and one of the best pitchers in the country in 2020 before the COVID-19 pandemic cancelled the season. Chicago drafted Crochet with the 11th pick in the 2020 MLB Draft and Crochet was the first player from his draft class to reach the show, making his debut in the COVID-19 shortened 2020 regular season.
The 2024 MLB All-Star is on July 16 at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas— home of the World Champion Texas Rangers.
