Lefty Garrett Crochet, which the Red Sox acquired in a trade Wednesdayhe wore number 45 with the White Sox. Obviously, he won’t be able to take it with Boston.
The number 45, worn by Pedro Martínez, is one of the 11 Red Sox retired numbers on the right field facade at Fenway Park.
“That was one of the first things I noticed after the trade happened,” Crochet said during a Zoom call with the media on Friday. “And then I took 34 to college and that one was retired.”
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Crochet will wear No. 35 with Boston.
The three previous numbers he wore are all retired. Not only did he wear #34 (David Ortiz) in college, but he also wore #14 (Jim Rice) in high school.
“So it was funny how it all worked out,” Crochet said.
On the possibility of meeting and talking pitching with Martinez during spring training, Crochet said, “I think having any kind of conversation with Pedro would be my ideal world.”
The lefty posted a 3.58 ERA, 2.69 FIP, 209 strikeouts and 33 walks in 32 starts (146 innings) in 2024 for Chicago. He was in the 98th percentile in punt percentage (35.1%) and in the 93rd percentile in both scent percentage (33.1%) and chase percentage (33.5%). His fastball averaged 97.2 mph.