Tennessee Professional Athletes

Crochet's Comeback Becomes a Cautionary Tale

Garrett Crochet's return from a five-month injury was historic. It was also a disaster.

The Tennessee product appeared in Game 2 of the AL Wild Card Series after missing most of the regular season, making him one of the most unusual postseason roster inclusions in recent memory. Boston added him as a bullpen option — a significant departure from his role as a frontline starter — and the gamble did not pay off. Crochet surrendered four earned runs and struck out just one batter in his October appearance, a performance that punctuated a brutal 9-2 loss to the Yankees that completed a two-game sweep and ended the Red Sox's season.

After the game, Crochet did not hide from the moment. He called himself a "little bit at fault" and said he felt "like s--t" following the loss — candid words that underscored how much the outcome stung for a pitcher who had worked back from injury specifically to contribute in October.

The debate over his inclusion had already been loud before a single pitch was thrown. A Red Sox legend publicly called the decision a "huge" mistake, questioning whether Crochet was physically ready to handle playoff intensity after such a lengthy absence. The Red Sox committed to him anyway, including him on the Wild Card Series roster while leaving other bubble players behind. Monday's pregame workout at Yankee Stadium offered only cautious optimism; the results on the mound offered none.

The subplot that makes this story sting further: the Chicago White Sox, who traded Crochet to Boston, advanced past the Red Sox to the ALDS. The trade that was supposed to put the Sox over the top now looks, at minimum, complicated — and at worst, a miscalculation. Multiple outlets have begun reassessing who actually won the blockbuster deal.

A Silver Lining in the Minors

Not every Tennessee alum had a rough week. While Crochet's October unraveled in the Bronx, fellow Vol Andrew Fischer was earning hardware elsewhere. Baseball America named Fischer its 2026 Minor League Player of the Year, crediting the Brewers first baseman's 48 home runs — a figure that stood out even in what the publication called "the year of the homer." Fischer has not yet reached Milwaukee's roster, but the award signals that a big-league arrival may not be far off.

Regular-Season Curtain Call

A handful of Vols closed out their regular seasons in the final days of the period. Jordan Beck went 1-for-4 with a run scored and a walk for Colorado in a September 27 loss to the White Sox, finishing the year with a .200 average as his role with the Rockies grew uncertain. Drew Gilbert drew a walk in San Francisco's loss to the Dodgers that same afternoon. Christian Moore had a two-game split-doubleheader on September 27 for the Angels, going 1-for-2 with a run and two walks in the nightcap, closing out a difficult debut season at the big-league level with a .191 average.

The week belonged to Crochet, for better and worse. The history he made returning from injury earned him a footnote. The four earned runs in a playoff elimination game will linger longer.

Three Tennessee alumni defined the final stretch of the MLB regular season in dramatically different ways — one chasing a playoff moment, one carrying a middling roster on his back, and one watching his season dissolve before it truly began.

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Garrett Crochet: The Playoff Gamble in Boston

The Red Sox clinched a Wild Card berth when Atlanta beat Houston, setting up a postseason run that could begin with — or without — their best pitcher. Crochet, out since April with left shoulder inflammation, has been cleared for neither regular-season action nor a guaranteed playoff spot. What he has done is make believers out of his coaching staff.

After a bullpen session that he described as ramping up to "a place that I haven't gone yet," Crochet took what the organization called a "huge step" toward return. Red Sox manager Alex Cora has remained publicly cautious, confirming Crochet will miss the final four regular-season games but leaving the door open for a postseason appearance when the Wild Card Series opens September 29. The bullpen sessions are being watched closely — specifically his workload and recovery windows — as Boston's front office weighs whether to activate him for the roster. The calculus is simple and high-stakes: a fully functional Crochet changes Boston's ceiling. A prematurely activated one could make things worse.

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Christian Moore: Carrying the Angels Through Seattle

While the Angels spend another October at home, Christian Moore gave their fanbase something to remember in the season's final days. The sophomore second baseman went on a multi-game tear through a Seattle series that doubled as a referendum on the franchise's youth movement.

Moore delivered a walk-off infield single with two outs and the bases loaded in an 11-inning win over the Twins on September 19, then carried that momentum into the Mariners series. He drove in three runs in a 6-4 victory on Friday, homered and added three more RBIs in a 7-5 win on Saturday, and finished the stretch with a two-run double in a third consecutive Angels win. The surge — six RBIs across consecutive wins over Seattle — was central to Los Angeles's bid to avoid a historically bad 100-loss season. Moore entered the week hitting .170; he closed it at .186, a modest number that badly undersells his late-season impact.

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Blade Tidwell: A Brutal End in San Francisco

The Giants' week brought the kind of news that makes rebuilds feel longer than they are. Blade Tidwell, acquired with the expectation that he'd anchor a young rotation, was diagnosed with a high-grade UCL sprain following a 3-2 loss to Minnesota — a game in which he had actually pitched reasonably, giving up one earned run across 3.1 innings. The team is recommending surgery, which would effectively end not just his 2026 season but push his timeline well into 2027.

The injury is the latest in a string of pitching losses for San Francisco, and it raises pointed questions about a pipeline that keeps seeing its most promising arms break down. Tidwell's ERA sat at 4.45 at the time of the injury — hardly a disaster, but hardly the dominant presence the Giants envisioned when they brought him in. Now, those questions will wait another year for answers.

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Elsewhere in the Vol diaspora, Drew Gilbert posted a strong week for the Giants — including a 3-for-3 game with a homer and three RBIs on September 22 — even as San Francisco lost ground in the standings. Jordan Beck chipped in with scattered hits for a Rockies club well out of contention.

Tennessee's pro pipeline had plenty to celebrate this week — from minor league history in the making to a clutch extra-inning blast at the MLB level, with a side of closer controversy in Anaheim.

Fischer Rewrites the Record Books

The biggest story out of Vol Nation this week doesn't come from the big leagues — it comes from Andrew Fischer, who accomplished something no minor leaguer had done in roughly two decades. The Brewers' third-base prospect capped a record-setting 47-home run season, shattering a longstanding Minor League Baseball mark and cementing his status as one of the fastest-rising power hitters in the game.

Fischer's surge isn't an isolated phenomenon. According to Sports Illustrated, four former Vols sluggers crushed 30-plus homers in the minors this season, a testament to the power-development culture Tennessee head coach Tony Vitello has built in Knoxville. Fischer headlined the group, but the depth of the pipeline is what separates this from a one-man story. When four alumni from the same program are simultaneously mashing at the pro level, it's a system — not a fluke.

Gilbert Delivers in October Preview Mode

At the MLB level, Drew Gilbert gave Giants fans a moment to remember. With San Francisco knotted at five against St. Louis on Wednesday, Gilbert stepped up in the top of the tenth inning and launched a two-run homer to give the Giants a 6–5 victory — a rare road series win for a club pressing toward the postseason. The blast was Gilbert's defining moment of a week in which he also drew walks in three other contests, finishing the stretch hitting .233.

Heavy Sports framed the performance as a "2027 audition," and it's hard to argue otherwise. The former first-round pick is making the case for a larger outfield role heading into next season, and a homer in extras is exactly the kind of résumé line that sticks with a front office.

Joyce's Closer Role Under the Microscope

Not every Tennessee arm had a clean week. Ben Joyce — the Angels' 105-mph fireballer — surrendered two earned runs in a ninth-inning appearance Friday against Minnesota in a 5–4 Angels loss, adding another blown save to what has become a troubling pattern. Sports Illustrated raised the central question bluntly: is Joyce actually the Angels' closer of the future?

The stuff is undeniable. The command and consistency are not, at least not yet. Joyce's ERA settled at 4.40 following the outing, and with the Angels already out of contention, there's little urgency to protect him from consequences. Whether the Angels double down on his development in the role or pivot to someone else this offseason is a question that will define their bullpen construction entering 2027.

The Rest of the Vols

Elsewhere, Jordan Beck continued to grind through a difficult year in Colorado, batting .199–.200 across the week's games as the Rockies were thoroughly outclassed in their matchups. Christian Moore posted a hit Saturday for the Angels but remains in a significant offensive slump, hovering around the .165–.179 range. Blade Tidwell turned in a solid 6.2-inning, two-run outing for the Giants in a Tuesday blowout win over St. Louis — a quietly encouraging data point for a young arm still finding his footing.

The headliner, though, remains Fischer. History has a way of pulling focus, and 47 home runs in a single minor league season is the kind of number that doesn't get forgotten.