Why Kutter Crawford Has Excelled In Second Go-Around With Red Sox

It seemed unfathomable at the start of the season, but Kutter Crawford has been the Boston Red Sox’s best starting pitcher over the last month.

Crawford continued his run of strong starts Thursday in Boston’s 4-2 win over the Cleveland Guardians, allowing just a single run over 5 2/3 innings while letting up three hits and striking out two. It was the fifth consecutive start from the right-hander in which he didn’t yield more than three runs.

His most recent performances are a stark contrast to his showings at the beginning of the season when he came out of Boston’s bullpen. But after getting sent down to Triple-A Worcester and being recalled, Crawford has sure found his footing in the starting rotation.

“I’m used to starting. I came up as a starter so that’s definitely more comfortable,” Crawford said, as seen on NESN’s postgame coverage. “Beginning of the year, that was a role I wasn’t used to. I had to fix some things mechanically. But last month, I felt like I’m starting to get in a little groove.”

Red Sox manager Alex Cora made sure to praise Crawford for bouncing back after struggling at the outset of the season.

Cora’s seen a different Crawford in his second go-around with the club this season, as the 26-year-old has effectively mixed in all his pitches while showing terrific control — he threw 49 of his 69 pitches for strikes.

“We tried, but it wasn’t working,” Cora said of Crawford’s early-season struggles, as seen on NESN’s postgame coverage. “For him to go down and work with (Triple-A Worcester pitching coach Paul Abbott) and pitch and get back to who he is, it’s good to see. It’s a good fastball. He’s not afraid of the strike zone and he was really good for us tonight.”

Crawford was in agreement with Cora that utilizing all his pitches has made a significant difference.

“Just using my curveball and cutter more often, and throwing the slider more,” Crawford said. “The big one was getting the curveball in there a lot more. That seemed to help a lot.”

Crawford now has a sub-3.00 ERA in the month of July, as he has turned himself into one of the Red Sox’s most reliable pitchers.