Red Sox pitcher Kutter Crawford has established a dominant presence by leading the AL in WAR and recording an impressive ERA. He has put up a 0.66 ERA through five starts. Two qualities that have stood out for him are tenacity and his raw talent on the mound. The fact that he has also been able to bounce back from setbacks is also encouraging for the 28-year-old from Okeechobee, FL. The fact he has seemingly come out of nowhere with these impressive stats and numbers this season is also mind-boggling.
Kutter Crawford Leading AL in WAR
2024 AL Pitching WAR Leaders
Kutter Crawford (1.7)
José Berríos (1.6)
Ronel Blanco (1.5)
Paul Blackburn (1.3)All Leaders: https://t.co/moXSTTYNyO pic.twitter.com/R8vwI2fKru
— Baseball Reference (@baseball_ref) April 23, 2024
On April 20th, Crawford pitched an impressive six innings with six strikeouts and a 0.66 ERA. He’s having a great start to the season for the Red Sox, and fans love the energy he is showing through his dominance on the mound. It’s always encouraging to see a player in MLB who shows pizzazz. His vitality has put the league on notice. His ERA is currently the lowest in MLB among starting pitchers. All this attention on Crawford is coming for the right reasons, as he has been stellar. As you can see, his 82 mph splitter is lethal. The way it progressively drops makes it easy to fool hitters and make them second guess at the plate.
Kutter Crawford, Filthy 82mph Splitter.
pic.twitter.com/7BvJW0DSJl
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) April 20, 2024
Crawford’s Dominance
Will this be Crawford’s breakout season? If he can continue to dominate and showcase that energy on the mound, it appears likely so far. Amazingly, his ERA was at 0.42 after he faced the Cleveland Guardians, where he recorded six strikeouts and no runs. It would certainly be his best season if he continues to pitch the way he has. His career ERA is 4.27, and he can get this down with a strong 2024 campaign. Seeing pitchers drastically improve to become killers on the mound is always compelling. Crawford deserves credit for his early dominance this season.
Crawford currently leads baseball in bWAR (1.5) and fWAR (0.9). It is definitely satisfying to see a player’s statistics progress from season to season, and Crawford is a standout example of that so far in 2024. He’s emerged as an ace, and it will be intriguing to see how he continues to pitch, especially in a tough AL East.
Photo Credit: © D. Ross Cameron-USA TODAY Sports
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