The Garrett Crochet starter experience starts Opening Day for White Sox

It’s a new season, and a new Opening Day starter for the White Sox.

For Garrett Crochet, it’s a new job, one he has never held as a professional.

Starting pitcher, that is.

But Crochet, a first-round draft choice who turned heads with 101-, 102- and 103-mph velocity when called up shortly after he was selected in the first round in 2020, is the most exciting thing the Sox have going.

So inject that into an Opening Day atmosphere that needs some buzz. A capacity crowd at Guaranteed Rate Field might not be on hand to see a team coming off 101 losses face the Tigers, but maybe Crochet, for at least a day or so, can create some needed March mojo on the South Side.

“The stuff we saw [in spring training] is reminiscent of what we saw in 2020 when he came over,” general manager Chris Getz said.

“It was almost like every game he was available to pitch, you couldn’t wait for Garrett Crochet to get into the game. To be able to have him kick off tomorrow is really exciting to watch.”

How deep into the game Crochet will go remains to be seen. He threw 80 pitches in his last Cactus League start, so he’s capable of four innings, if not more depending on how economical he is with his starter’s fastball, slider, cutter, changeup repertoire.

“It’s just shutting down the opposing hitters, and that will dictate the length of it,” Crochet said Wednesday.

Crochet will have family in the crowd and will have to navigate the butterflies that accompany Opening Day.

“I know with the announcements and introductions and everything, it can kind of throw you off a little bit,” he said.

But the 6-6 left-hander was unwavering in camp, holding his head high. He carried himself confidently, knowing Getz and staff were giving him the chance he coveted to be a starter, even though he had thrown 73 major-league innings — including just 12⅔ last season — and is not far removed from elbow and shoulder injuries.

“I’m confident,” Crochet said. “My body was reacting well throughout the entire spring training, so I intend to keep the routine going and keep taking care of my body the way I have been, and everything else should fall into place.”

As for the number of innings and/or starts he will generate, no one is saying. There is a general, unspoken big-picture plan in place, but part of it involves seeing how he performs and recovers.

“I don’t think anybody knows,” manager Pedro Grifol said. “I just think his will and drive to be a starter showed up in spring training. ‘This is what I want to do.’ ’’

As for Thursday, “I’m not going to set any expectations on him,” Grifol said. “I don’t know if he can go six, I don’t know if he’s going to go four, it all depends. If he’s feeling good, we don’t have limitations on him. Go out there and pitch. Go out there and compete. You go as far as you go, and when you’re done, reflect on it, get better for your next outing and go do the same thing.”

Opening Days, for some, are once-in-a-lifetime experiences.

“It doesn’t matter how many years you’re in the league, Opening Day is Opening Day,” Grifol said. “It’s a really cool feeling, and it doesn’t matter whether it’s Year 1 or Year 20. This is what we love to do. This is a nice feeling.”

Grifol wants Crochet to relax and enjoy the moment.

“Just take it all in,” he said. “He did a phenomenal job in preparing himself for this moment. He had envisioned this. He wanted to start. He had dreams of being a major-league starter and he had the will and the drive to put himself in this position.”