Red Sox Ace Bloodied But Unbroken After Scary Line Drive Incident

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Garrett Crochet took a line drive off the face, and still managed to punch out the next batter.

The Red Sox ace endured a scary moment Sunday afternoon when an 87 mph line drive from Carlos Correa deflected off his glove, clipped his nose, and somehow still turned into an out. Second baseman Kristian Campbell scooped it and threw out Correa at first for a bizarre 1-4-3 groundout.

Crochet looked dazed as manager Alex Cora and the training staff sprinted to the mound. He asked for a towel, blew his nose, and appeared to have a small trickle of blood. But the 24-year-old lefty stayed in—shaken but not shelved.

Red Sox Ace Dodges a Bullet

After the scare, Crochet went and did what front-line pitchers do. He struck out Jonah Bride with a sweeper, gave up a single to Brooks Lee, and got Harrison Bader to bounce out to end the inning. His day ended after five gritty frames: 89 pitches, one earned run, four hits, six strikeouts—and one assist that might end up on his personal highlight reel.

Somehow Garrett Crochet’s nose didn’t explode and he stayed in the game after thishttps://twitter.com/TalkinBaseball_/status/1919103833378017555

The Red Sox fell to the Twins, 5-4, but the outing offered a gut-check moment for Boston’s $170 million man, who signed a six-year extension on April 1 after arriving in a trade from the White Sox.

Cora didn’t mince words after watching the drama unfold up close.

“He turned his head just in time,” The Associated Press reports. “The ball grazed his glove and caught him in the nose, but it could’ve been a lot worse.”

The Red Sox bullpen couldn’t hold a late lead, and the bats went quiet in the final innings. But Crochet’s willingness to stay in the game after a shot to the face wasn’t just about guts—it was about leadership. That’s the kind of presence Boston paid for.

Whether that inning ends up as a turning point in a long season or just another weird stat—“assist via nose”—Crochet’s performance left an impression. Not just on the scoreboard, but on anyone who’s ever stood on a mound and wondered if today might be the day a liner comes right at your face.

You just don’t see many 1-4-3 groundouts like that.

The Red Sox have Monday off before opening a three game homestand against the Texas Rangers Tuesday night.

Jay Pritchard covers Major League Baseball, the National Football League, and sports media for Heavy.com. More about Jay Pritchard