Tarik Skubal reveals the one pitch he would steal from Garrett Crochet

Jared Bloom

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Tarik Skubal reveals the one pitch he would steal from Garrett Crochet image

Fans of elite pitching were treated to quite the season in 2025. There were tons of elite aces continuing to show their prowess, and other pitchers who had plenty of gutsy performances. 

The American League Cy Young Award came down to three names: Detroit Tigers ace Tarik Skubal, Boston Red Sox ace Garrett Crochet, and Houston Astros ace Hunter Brown. 

In reality, the competition was between Crochet and Skubal, who ran away with the votes. Crochet was able to get four first-place votes, but that was nothing compared to Skubal's 26, crowning him the best pitcher in the AL for the second year in a row. 

Tarik Skubal reveals the one pitch he would steal from Garrett Crochet

Garrett Crochet has come a long way in a short time. Drafted in the first round of the 2020 MLB Draft by the Chicago White Sox, he was the first player to be promoted that same year to the big leagues. 

However, he was used as a reliever up until recently. He would then transition to being a starting pitcher in 2024 and has not looked back. 

His arm slot, velocity, and spin rate make him a formidable arm. When asked if he could steal a pitch from Crochet to add to his arsenal, Skubal did not need long to think, via Foul Territory. 

"His slider/sweeper thing, I don't know what he calls it. But it's like an 84-86 mph slider that's got a ton of depth and a ton of glove-side movement. That'd be the easiest pitch for me to add to my arsenal. I don't have a pitch that does that and and my slider is hard, it's anywhere from 90-92 [mph]. If I had a breaking ball at 84-86 [mph], with that weapon to lefties, you can't even put a lefty in the lineup against Crochet."

Skubal cannot get over Crochet's sweeper. It is a tough pitch to hit, especially for left-handed batters. For the most part, the ball looks like it's coming right at them before it dips away and catches the black.

However, with the way Skubal has been operating, his arsenal is just fine as it is. If you flipped the script, I'd guarantee there is a pitch or two of Skubal's that Crochet would love to add to his arsenal. 

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Contributing Writer