MINNEAPOLIS — Garrett Crochet’s second inning Wednesday against the Minnesota Twins began with a walk.
“Starting an inning with a leadoff walk, you’re expecting to get out of the inning having given up at least one (run),” the Chicago White Sox starter said. “So, that’s just never a good start.”
Crochet allowed four runs in the inning — including a three-run home run by Willi Castro — in a 6-3 loss in front of 12,546 at Target Field.
“I feel like I executed my plan for the most part all day,” Crochet said. “It was just (that) they executed theirs as well.”
Crochet allowed five runs on seven hits with six strikeouts and two walks in four-plus innings as the road woes continued for the Sox.
They are 0-6 on this two-city trip, which concludes Thursday. And they are 1-12 on the road this season, the worst start in franchise history.
Road or home hasn’t mattered all that much. At 3-21, the Sox are off to their worst 24-game start in franchise history.
Kevin Pillar and Korey Lee hit solo home runs for the Sox in the third and Braden Shewmake swiped home in the fifth as part of a double steal to get the Sox within 4-3. But the Sox only had one base runner in the final four innings, when Paul DeJong got hit by a pitch in the seventh.
Starter Joe Ryan and three Minnesota relievers combined to limit the Sox to four hits.
Meanwhile, the Twins got to Crochet early. The left-hander has allowed at least five runs in each of his last three starts.
He said of the down-and-in slider that Castro hit for the three-run home run: “That’s the fourth time that’s happened this year.”
“In the past coming out of the bullpen, I’d throw fastballs arm side and I’d throw sliders right there, so to get burned on that several times this year is tough,” Crochet said. “But I think I have to come to the realization that that’s a bad pitch and not the spot that I want to throw it.
“It’s a very easy pitch for a right-handed hitter to just drop their hands on. I think that I need to put some work in, in the bullpen on that.”
Crochet had a 2.00 ERA in his first three starts, but a 13.11 ERA in his last three.
“I had a lot of success with (the changeup) tonight so I hope to use it going forward, but I don’t think that’s going to be the overall difference maker,” Crochet said. “I think the difference maker is commanding my slider better, having a better plan of attack with the heater and changing from in and away and not really sticking with the glove-side fastball.”
Manager Pedro Grifol is confident Crochet will make the proper tweaks.
“The league is going to make adjustments to you,” Grifol said. “It is what it is. You’re going to have to really watch carefully what’s happening, quickly in the game, and adapt. And he’s got the weapons to do that.
“From my point of view, when you see right-handed hitters hitting tight sliders and hitting the inner half of the plate, you’ve got to get in there a little deeper or you’ve got to start peppering the outer half. We’ll take a look and make sure that’s what was happening. We’ll make adjustments.”