'Throw hard and be jacked': Kopech, Crochet set for Sox 'pen originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
Garrett Crochet was inspired by Michael Kopech before he even met him.
"Michael is a guy I knew about in college," Crochet said Saturday. "I saw a young guy throwing hard, and he was jacked.
"I wanted to go to college, throw hard and be jacked."
RELATED: Kopech's role for Sox could change over course of 2021
Both pitchers are throwing hard now, a pair of fireballers the White Sox envision as long-term mainstays in their starting rotations. Their starting days, however, might not fully come around until 2022. Right now, they're potentially dominant weapons out of the White Sox bullpen.
Crochet figures to stay there the entirety of the 2021 campaign after he dazzled by blowing triple-digit heat by batters at the end of last season, jumping right from the draft to the big leagues with zero pro experience. Kopech's story is a little different, with White Sox manager Tony La Russa saying that the right-hander might see his role change over the course of the 2021 season, leaving the door open for Kopech to pitch both out of the bullpen and as a member of the rotation.
But when the season begins April 1, both Crochet and Kopech will be at La Russa's disposal as bullpen weapons. Scary ones.
As for how he plans to use them, he revealed a little Saturday.
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"I think more than likely Michael will be used in situations where he'll pitch more (than just one inning at a time)," La Russa said. "If it's just one, that's fine, he'll come back sooner. But would not hesitate, with his starter arsenal.
"Right now, Crochet figures to be a valuable part of the last third of the game, so the likelihood of being stretched out for more than an inning, you'd have to have a circumstance where it was the reasonable thing to do. But it would be an exception."
That contrasts with what members of the White Sox front office were projecting before the spring began, with general manager Rick Hahn describing Crochet's potential role as "perhaps a multi-inning weapon down there." Plans can change, of course, and La Russa will be the one managing the bullpen on a nightly basis. While the thought of Crochet as a multi-inning super weapon, a la Andrew Miller during his glory days with the Cleveland Indians, is indeed tantalizing, that 101 mile and hour fire will be plenty effective if La Russa includes him as part of the setup-man mix in front of All-Star closer Liam Hendriks.
As for Kopech, the idea that the White Sox are, to borrow La Russa's words, "developing him as a starter" meshes well with using him in a multi-inning relief role. That gets Kopech more innings toward his eventual turn as a starting pitcher and could do so quickly enough to use him as a starter in 2021, if that's the way the team wants to do things.
Regardless, what was already shaping up to be a loaded 'pen — with Hendriks, Aaron Bummer, Evan Marshall, Codi Heuer and Matt Foster all involved — now boasts two more incredibly electric arms, further assistance in that unit's quest to be "elite" in 2021 and help the White Sox meet their championship-level expectations.
And the two are taking turns wowing each other.
Kopech revealed last week that the two are paired up when it comes to daily games of catch at White Sox camp, shining a light on what is perhaps the most painful game of catch in baseball. Both pitchers throw incredibly hard, with Kopech admitting he's "gone through a couple gloves already."
Saturday, Crochet chimed in after making his first Cactus League appearance of the spring, saying "it’s a lose-lose situation for anybody involved."
But it's what they do on the mound that's dazzled just about everyone at White Sox camp this spring, and they're no exception.
"That guy is nasty, man," Kopech said of Crochet. "I don’t know what to say about him other than I am very, very impressed by him. ... He has more than just a fastball. People already know that. Changeup is just as good. He’s going to be part of the future of this team, that is for sure. ... Having him in our bullpen and eventually as a starter is going to be a huge step for us. He’s exciting to watch, and I cant wait for everyone to see what we’re seeing."
"I’m thankful now I’m able to play catch with him and take advice from him day after day," Crochet said of Kopech. "The guy is an incredibly hard worker, and I’m definitely lucky I got paired up with him."
That's the future of the White Sox rotation right there. And the present of the White Sox bullpen.
As these two play a more prominent role on the pitching staff as time goes on, a new motto might emerge:
"Throw hard and be jacked."
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