Red Sox rising ace Payton Tolle is proving he’s more than just Garrett Crochet’s successor originally appeared on The Sporting News.
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The Red Sox have now spent a good amount of the season without their superstar ace, Garrett Crochet, leading their starting rotation. And now, it looks like he’s going to be out a little longer than expected as well.
However, this has not made Boston’s rotation suffer as much as you would think. The rotation is thriving for the most part, being one of the best in the MLB. In fact, one Sox starter in Payton Tolle has been extremely sensational, even putting together a Cy Young-level campaign.
Last season Tolle was very volatile
Tolle made his MLB debut in a duel against Paul Skenes and the Pittsburgh Pirates on August 29th, 2025. He got eight Ks, and only gave up two runs in 5.1 innings.
After that, though, he fell apart. He finished with a 6.06 ERA, 19 Ks, and a WHIP of 1.592 over 16 innings pitched. His problem was he would lose his top-notch velocity after just a few innings, which led to him throwing hitter-friendly balls quite frequently.
This led him to start this season in AAA, where he did pretty well. And when Sonny Gray was put on the IL, Tolle got a chance to return to the big leagues.
Tolle has been borderline unstoppable this season
May 16, 2026; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Boston Red Sox pitcher Payton Tolle (70) celebrates after a victory over the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images
Tolle’s nickname is “The Piglet”, which is a reference to Crochet’s, “The Pig”. Tolle has been seen as Crochet Jr., and rightfully so. While he’s 2-2 this season, he has a 2.61 ERA, 46 Ks, and a WHIP of 0.895 over 41 innings pitched.
On top of that, his xERA is a 2.20, which is the second-best in the MLB. xERA is basically taking all outside factors out of the equation: luck, defensive errors, and ballpark factors. By taking those out, Tolle is the second-best pitcher in the MLB.
Tolle may have a case for the Cy Young
© Eric Canha-Imagn Images
While he’s competing with some big dogs, Tolle definitely has the ability to throw his hat into the ring for the Cy Young race. If he can figure out how to keep his great stats while also getting wins, there’s no reason to count him out.
Hopefully, he figures it out and helps the Sox have two Pigs to put on the mound for years to come.
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