Unusually yet undeniably, the rotation market is easily led by a pitcher who’s already almost doubled his previous MLB innings high. White Sox reliever-turned-starter Garrett Crochet, the ace of baseball’s worst team, is coveted by the Yankees, Dodgers, Orioles, Padres and most other contenders, too. And why not? He’s perhaps the only true No. 1 starter available.
As for the innings issue, teams with huge leads could carefully monitor Crochet before turning him loose in October, some might transition him back into a featured reliever, and a few might just let him go full throttle in the belief that’s what he was meant to do. One interested exec who favors keeping him in regular rotation claims, “The innings limit is a scam.”