With rumors swirling, White Sox send Garrett Crochet to face Marlins

For Chicago White Sox left-hander Garrett Crochet, his outing against the host Miami Marlins on Saturday is not just another start -- it's an audition.

With 141 strikeouts in 101 1/3 innings, Crochet (6-6, 3.02 ERA) is the subject of a lot of trade rumors due to the White Sox's major-league worst record. Chicago also has the worst road record in the majors, and that's after beating Miami 3-2 in the series opener on Friday.

Crochet, Chicago's first-round pick out of the University of Tennessee in 2020, is in the prime of his career at age 25, but his durability is a concern.

Before this year, he was a setup reliever and had never pitched more than 54 1/3 innings in a major league season.

This year, he has nearly doubled that total before the All-Star break. Also, he missed the 2022 season due to injuries, and he pitched just 12 2/3 innings last season.

Crochet has faced Miami just once, tossing two-thirds of an inning without allowing a run on June 10, 2023.

In his latest outing, Crochet struck out 11 while yielding two runs in seven innings during a no-decision against the Colorado Rockies on Sunday.

Crochet said postgame regarding settling into the rotation, "I feel really good about it. With each start, it's growing."

Miami, which has the worst record in the National League, will counter with right-hander Yonny Chirinos (0-0, 3.77 ERA).

New to the Marlins this year, Chirinos will make his fourth start of the season.

After lasting at least five innings in each of his first two starts, Chirinos struggled his last time out against the Philadelphia Phillies. He allowed nine hits and three runs in 4 1/3 innings on Sunday.

In four career games (one start) against the White Sox, Chirinos is 1-1 with a 0.50 ERA.

The Marlins' rotation has been hit hard by injuries. The list of injured starters includes Sandy Alcantara, Eury Perez, Jesus Luzardo, Braxton Garrett, Ryan Weathers, Sixto Sanchez, Edward Cabrera and Max Meyer.

"We are lacking depth with our starting rotation," Marlins manager Skip Schumaker said after the Friday loss in which reliever Bryan Hoeing served as an opener.

Other issues for the Marlins, who have lost five straight games and have the worst home record in the majors, include a slump by first baseman Josh Bell and a possible injury to center fielder Jazz Chisholm Jr.

Bell, who had 22 homers and 74 RBIs last season, is 0-for-18 this month. He has eight home runs and 35 RBIs in 2024.

Chisholm told Schumaker late in the Friday game that he felt "tight" while running to first base.

"We'll see how he feels (Saturday)," Schumaker said, "but he has had some hamstring stuff before ... so you have to be cautious when he tells us he feels tight."

The White Sox, meanwhile, are hoping to get more stellar defense from center fielder Luis Robert Jr., who made perhaps the biggest play in the series opener.

Miami loaded the bases with two outs in the seventh, trailing 3-1. Bryan De La Cruz then hit a drive to right-center that was run down by Robert, who made a stylish, in-full-speed basket catch on the warning track.

"Not many guys can make that play," White Sox manager Pedro Grifol said. "I don't know what the catch probability is on that play."

--Field Level Media