Crochet makes statement against Dodgers' big trio

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- White Sox left-hander Garrett Crochet came out firing Tuesday.

Shohei Ohtani was only one of his victims. Again.

Crochet’s fastball consistently registered in the 98-99 mph range, and he used one of them to strike out Ohtani looking when they met in the first inning of a 9-6 White Sox loss to the Dodgers.

Ohtani took a first-pitch fastball high, fouled off a slider and another fastball, then took strike three.

“It happened so fast,” Crochet said. “The crowd was loud, so I think we were both kind of feeling the benefits of that. Just made some good pitches.”

In his spring debut, Crochet faced seven batters, all Dodgers regulars, and he retired Mookie Betts, Ohtani and Freddie Freeman in order in the first inning. Betts and Freeman grounded out.

Facing a lineup like that is “what you want,” Crochet said.

“After the offseason, where I put in a lot of hard work, I want to face a good lineup,” he said. “I want to see how things are playing. The results were good. Definitely some positives to take away, but some things I need to work on as well, so I’m just going to keep grinding.

“Just throwing strikes, that’s been my theme.”

Crochet has struck out Ohtani in each of their two regular-season meetings.

“He’s a good player. You have to make good pitches,” Crochet said. “I have an idea what he is looking for. He’s a power threat, so just trying to get ahead early and stay ahead."

One of Crochet’s fastballs registered “00” on the Camelback Ranch radar gun Tuesday. If it were not 100 mph, it bore a strong resemblance.

Crochet gave up two singles and struck out two, and he got Jason Heyward to swing through a 98 mph fastball on his 34th and final pitch before leaving with two outs in the second inning.

“Coming out pretty good,” said Crochet, who threw one changeup but otherwise stuck to his fastball/slider mix. “Had some good takes. Some bad swings. They timed it up a couple of times, but if you are not landing the slider, that is going to happen.”

He said working with former White Sox left-hander Clayton Richard in a recent bullpen session was beneficial. The two first met at the White Sox alternate site in 2020.

“He’s kind of taken me under his wing the last couple of days and been a good mentor,” Crochet said. “I trust in a lot of stuff he has to say.”

Pitch conviction has been a talking point.

“Just having more confidence and conviction in my stuff,” Crochet said. “There were a couple of times when I challenged hitters and they beat me, and a couple of times where I challenged them and I won. That’s kind of the thing I’ve been working on all spring, throwing pitches with conviction.”

Working into the second inning Tuesday “was nice,” he said. “I was scratching at the door all week long about that. Had a quick first one so I was able to get out there again.”

Manager Pedro Grifol has seen how intimidating a convicted Crochet can look. Grifol said he set up behind the catcher during Crochet’s last live batting practice session.

“He’s pretty uncomfortable [to face],” Grifol said. “If you are left-handed, when he kicks that leg up in the air like that, he’s coming right at you.”

The White Sox are planning to stretch out Crochet this spring to give him a chance to earn a spot in a starting rotation headed by Dylan Cease. Crochet embraces the opportunity.

“A lot of competition going on this spring, but I think that’s just going to push everybody,” he said. “I’m seeing the benefits right now and just trying to keep pushing.”

Just 24 years old, Crochet has pitched 73 innings in parts of three Major League seasons, so his workload will be monitored.

“The innings are not a concern, but there is something to watch,” Grifol said. “We keep a close eye on that, but we are going to stretch him out and see what happens and see where the chips fall.”