Garrett Crochet Takes Blame For Red Sox's 'Unacceptable' Loss Vs. Astros

Garrett Crochet Takes Blame For Red Sox's 'Unacceptable' Loss Vs. Astros originally appeared on NESN. Add NESN as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

Coming off four straight losses, the Boston Red Soxdesperately needed a win in Wednesday's series finale against the Houston Astros before heading back to Boston for their home opener.

The slumping Red Sox turned to their ace, Garrett Crochet, who pitched them to their only victory against the Cincinnati Reds on Opening Day.

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Unfortunately, Crochet wasn't able to deliver, surrendering five runs (four earned) on six hits and no walks with seven strikeouts over five innings, taking the loss in Boston's 6-4 defeat.

After the game, a dejected Crochet blamed himself for the Red Sox's fifth consecutive loss.

"It's embarrassing. Typically, in the past, I've played that stopper role, and today I just let the guys down. Especially when we scratched one early in the first, and then for me to give it right back and then ultimately give them the lead in the bottom of the first, it's unacceptable," Crochet told NESN during his postgame interview.

Garrett Crochet says he let the team down and his performance was unacceptable today.

Calls the slow start for the second year in a row "embarrassing." pic.twitter.com/GW2VXstR8C

— Tyler Milliken (@tylermilliken_) April 1, 2026

Boston gave the two-time All-Star a quick 1-0 lead on Willson Contreras' RBI single in the first, but Crochet was unable to hold it. He yielded two runs in the bottom of the frame, and the Red Sox never led again.

Boston rallied to tie the game in the second, but Crochet gave up a three-run homer to Carlos Correa in the fifth, allowing the Astros to break the game open.

Fortunately for the Red Sox, they have a day off on Thursday to reset before hosting the San Diego Padres in their home opener at Fenway Park on Friday.

"We're about to go home, and I expect us to have a better response once we get there. Especially with an off day to really sit on this, sit on these tough times," Grochet added. "Today I felt like we made the adjustment. Ultimately, it was me that kind of screwed the game up for us."

Crochet wasn't the sharpest and could have pitched better, but it wasn't all his fault. Boston committed two errors and continued to struggle with runners in scoring position, going 1-for-7 in those situations and stranding seven men on base.

The star lefty will have to wait until his next start against the Milwaukee Brewers next week to try to bounce back. Meanwhile, his teammates will look to put their rough road trip behind them and rebound at home this weekend.

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With a 26-10 record, the South Bay Lakers clinched the top seed in the G League's Western Conference and reached the playoffs for the first time in three years. On Wednesday, they began their quest for the league championship by facing the San Diego Clippers in the first round of the playoffs.

This game was close throughout, but down the stretch, South Bay was able to make more plays, especially on the offensive end. Chris Mañon scored five points in the final 1:21 of the fourth quarter, and his steal with 10.4 seconds left helped clinch a 122-119 victory and a trip to the next round of the postseason.

Mañon had seven points and four rebounds, while Malik Williams and Drew Timme both had a team-high 21 points. Kobe Bufkin turned in 20 points on 7-of-13 field-goal shooting, plus five assists, four rebounds and one block, and Nick Smith Jr. scored 18 points and added five assists and two steals off the bench.

Rookie forward Adou Thiero played 18 minutes and contributed eight points, three rebounds, two assists and one block. Dalton Knecht also had eight points, to go along with six rebounds and three assists.

In the next round of the playoffs, South Bay will host the Rio Grande Valley Vipers on Friday at 7:00 p.m. That game can be seen on Prime Video.

This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: South Bay Lakers recap: Lakers sneak past Clippers to start playoffs

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive TV listings provided by LiveSportsOnTV.