Crochet wants Red Sox teammates to give Yankees the business, tells them to dress for success

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NEW YORK (AP) — Garrett Crochet wanted his Boston teammates to give the Yankees the business, so the All-Star pitcher told them to dress for success when they headed to New York for their postseason opener.

“We were traveling comfortable here, and he decided to go business casual,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Monday. “He sent the text, so he overruled the manager."

Crochet will make his first postseason start Tuesday night when the Red Sox (89-73) return to the playoffs for the first time since 2021 with an AL Wild Card Series opener in the Bronx. Max Fried (19-5) will be on the mound for the Yankees (94-68) in a matchup of All-Star left-handers.

Boston clinched a postseason berth Friday and the best-of-three matchup was locked in Sunday, when the Yankees lost the AL East title to Toronto on a tiebreaker as Boston beat Detroit. The wild card winner advances to a Division Series against the Blue Jays.

“This could be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for some guys on this team, so I think that we should treat it with the dignity that it deserves,” Crochet said.

Cora had intended for relaxed attire on Sunday's charter flight.

“We’ve been traveling comfortable for a while now because of the schedule,” he said.

Crochet's previous postseason appearances were as a reliever with the Chicago White Sox in 2020 and '21. He was traded to the Red Sox last December and agreed in April to a $170 million, six-year contract that starts next year.

“I always wanted to be this guy that could throw a Game 1 of a playoff series, so to be here now comes as no surprise,” he said.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone said he will start left-handed-hitting Austin Wells, who caught 27 of Fried’s 32 starts, and probably right-handed-hitting first baseman Paul Goldschmidt against Crochet, who was 3-0 with a 3.29 ERA in four starts against New York this year.

Fried left Atlanta for a $218 million, eight-year contract with the Yankees. He was 10-2 with a 1.92 ERA in his first 17 starts before he was bothered by a blister on his left index finger and went 3-3 with a 6.80 ERA over his next eight outings, then rebounded to go 6-0 with a 1.55 ERA in his last seven.

Fried was 1-1 with a 1.96 ERA in three games against Boston. His average fastball was 97.2 mph against the Red Sox on Sept. 13, 1.4 mph above his season average.

“It's not going to be a great day for the back of your baseball card,” Boston's Rob Refsnyder said.

Among the highlights of Yankees-Red Sox games are New York’s Graig Nettles separating a shoulder of Red Sox pitcher Bill Lee during a 1976 brawl set off when the Yankees’ Lou Piniella collided with catcher Carlton Fisk; Bucky Dent’s three-run homer over the Green Monster in the 1978 AL East tiebreaker game; Pedro Martinez shoving Yankees coach Don Zimmer to the ground in the 2003 ALCS; Boone’s 11th-inning walk-off homer off Tim Wakefield in Game 7 a few days later; Alex Rodriguez and Jason Varitek setting off a brawl in July 2004; Dave Roberts’ steal of second in the 2004 AL Championship Series that started the first comeback from an 0-3 postseason series deficit; and Curt Schilling’s bloody sock game a few days after that.

“I’ve been watching this rivalry for a long time now, since the A-Rod/Varitek situation,” Yankees reliever Fernando Cruz said.

New York and Boston are 12-12 in the postseason, but the Red Sox have won eight of the last nine games, starting with the 2004 comeback. Boston won a 2018 Division Series in four games and the 2021 wild card game.

Boston won this year's season series 9-4, going 5-2 at Yankee Stadium.

“Baseball wants a Yankees-Red Sox postseason, so it’s going to be really bright lights, a huge national stage and a whole lot of fun competing with these guys,” said Red Sox first baseman Nathaniel Lowe, an August pickup. “It’s going to be high octane, really competitive, a lot of fun to play. We’re not making friends out there. We can be friends when it’s over.”

Defending AL champion New York started the season 35-20, slumped during a 25-34 stretch, then closed 34-14.

Boston was 30-35 through late May, then went 59-38.

“A lot of people saw it coming,” Boone said. “I think he’s played ‘The Little Engine That Could’ a little bit over there.”

Cora lavished compliments on Yankees captain Aaron Judge, who led the major leagues in batting average (.331) by 20 percentage points, in slugging percentage (.688) by 66 and in on-base percentage (.457) by 58.

“Everybody thought that he wasn’t going to be able to do it because he didn’t have (Juan) Soto in the lineup, and he was the best hitter in the league,” Cora said. “He hit like .330-whatever when guys are hitting .240, right? That's special. And then he hits the ball out of the ballpark and he’s a good baserunner obviously a little bit banged up defensively, but he’s really good out there. Just impressive."

Cora is 17-8 as a manager in the postseason, starting 17-5 before the Red Sox wasted a 2-1 lead against Houston in the 2021 ALCS.

Red Sox third baseman Alex Bregman will be appearing in his 10th straight postseason after leaving Houston for a $120 million, three-year contract with the Red Sox. The opener will be his 100th postseason game.

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