Garrett Crochet, Tarik Skubal Trade Shutouts in 2025 Cy Young Sequel
· Yahoo Sports
Garrett Crochet, Tarik Skubal Trade Shutouts in 2025 Cy Young Sequel originally appeared on NESN. Add NESN as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The 2026 American League Cy Young race officially reignited on Thursday, and it took less than nine innings for Garrett Crochet and Tarik Skubal to remind the baseball world why they are the two most feared left-handers on the planet.
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In the 2025 season, the award circuit was defined by a polarizing debate between Crochet's raw dominance and Skubal's surgical consistency. While Crochet put together a season for the ages, leading the majors with 255 strikeouts and logging more than 200 innings, he ultimately finished as the runner-up to Skubal, whose 2.21 ERA and 0.89 WHIP proved too efficient for voters to ignore.
Both pitchers made Opening Day starts on Thursday, and unsurprisingly, they dominated their opponents.
In Cincinnati, Crochet took the mound for the Red Sox looking less like a man seeking redemption and more like one intent on total conquest. Making his second consecutive Opening Day start for Boston, the towering southpaw silenced a raucous Great American Ball Park crowd with six masterful, scoreless frames.
Armed with a triple-digit heater and newly refined changeup that moved with the violence of a splitter, Crochet fanned eight Reds and allowed just three hits while also picking up the win.
Crochet's afternoon was defined by a high-leverage escape in the sixth inning. He struck out Eugenio Suarez and Spencer Steer with the bases loaded to preserve a scoreless tie and validate the record-breaking six-year, $170 million extension he signed last spring.
Bases loaded?
— NESN (@NESN) March 26, 2026
Crochet says 🤫 with back-to-back Ks 🔥 pic.twitter.com/ZuGhshpv5U
While Crochet was busy dismantling the Reds, Skubal was more than 2,000 miles away in San Diego, mirroring his rival's brilliance with haunting precision. The back-to-back Cy Young winner tossed six shutout innings of his own against the Padres, surrendering only three hits and striking out six in a Tigers victory.
Tarik Skubal absolutely shoved today, as nasty as ever, and he was insanely efficient:
— Coast to Coast Baseball (@C2Cbsbl) March 26, 2026
6 IP
1 R(0ER)
3 H
6 K
0 BB
74 pitches
He looks primed to chase down a 3rd straight Cy Young award#RepDetroit#Tigers#OpeningDaypic.twitter.com/6L2ssTqicU
For the better part of three hours, the two aces traded metaphorical zeros across time zones, picking up right where their 2025 duel left off. Both pitchers entered the day with the highest of expectations and both exited with 0.00 ERAs.
For the Red Sox, however, Crochet's gem was bolstered by a glimpse into a very bright future. The 3-0 victory was sparked by a three-hit performance from 21-year-old phenom Roman Anthony.
With Ceddanne Rafaela providing the go-ahead RBI in the seventh and former Reds legend Aroldis Chapman slamming the door with 101 mph heat in the ninth, Boston looked like it was in complete control.
While Skubal may currently hold the AL Cy Young trophy, Crochet and the revamped Red Sox sent a thunderous message on Thursday.