Position: RHP
Height: 6’1”
Weight: 240 lbs
Bats/Throws: R/R
Born: 09/09/1994
College: University of South Carolina
Drafted: 2nd round, 65th Overall, 2017 (Nationals)
How Acquired: Trade (from Nationals with Eddy Yean for Josh Bell)
Bonus: $946,500
40-man Roster: No
Rule 5 Eligible: Yes
Minor League Free Agency: 2024
Options Left: 1
Overview
The Indians drafted Crowe twice, but he didn’t sign until the Nationals drafted him in the second round in 2017. He missed the 2016 college season due to Tommy John surgery and also missed part of the previous season with a UCL tear. He originally threw the standard four pitches, all of which are roughly average, but he dropped his curve when he moved to the bullpen in 2022. His fastball averages 93-94 mph and he relies heavily on his slider. His command was generally solid in the minors, but he’s had problems with walks in the majors as he doesn’t often challenge hitters. The Pirates acquired Crowe from Washington for Josh Bell, a trade that didn’t produce much for them.
2017-20
Crowe moved up quickly through the Nationals’ system, reaching AA late in his second year. Until he got to AA, he put up good numbers with mostly low K rates. He consistently ranked well into Washington’s top ten prospects, according to Baseball American, but the Nationals typically had very weak farm systems. Crowe struggled when he first got to AA in 2018, so the Nationals sent him back there in 2019. He pitched well there in 16 starts, then went to AAA for ten starts. He had a rough time there, with a 6.17 ERA, but some of that was probably due to the introduction of a lively ball in AAA that year, as well as a high-offense environment at Fresno in the Pacific Coast League.
Crowe tested positive for COVID-19 in 2020 and missed the Nats’ training camp in the summer, but was eventually able to make three very rough starts for the team, which was plagued by injuries in the shortened season. The Nats traded him and Eddy Yean for Josh Bell on Christmas Eve.
2021-22
In 2021, Crowe opened the season with the Pirates, pitched once in relief and then was optioned to the alternate training site. He came back to the Pirates near the end of April and spent the rest of the season in the rotation. In fact, he led the team in starts, which says a lot about the state of the Pirates’ pitching. He struggled most of the time, getting his ERA below 5.50 in only one month. Opponents put up a robust 276/363/501 line against him. He tended to pitch well for a couple innings and then get hammered; that tended to happen in the second and fifth innings, when his ERA was 7.40 and 8.44, respectively. Crowe seemed to rely, or try to rely, on getting hitters to chase pitches out of the strike zone, leading to a high walk rate and a high gopher ball rate when he got the ball over the plate. He gave up 25 longballs, or one every four and a half innings. That tied him for eighth in the NL in home runs allowed even though he didn’t pitch a lot of innings.
In 2022, Crowe spent the season pitching in relief, apart from one, two-inning start as an opener. He led the team in appearances and relief innings. Unfortunately, Crowe’s season went from good to bad in dramatic fashion. He started off pitching in a multi-inning, middle relief role, and it was one of the few things that went right for the Pirates in the early season. Then the already-thin late-inning relief corps started running into problems. David Bednar and Yerry De Los Santos got hurt, and Chris Stratton got traded. Derek Shelton responded by committing the classic blunder of moving a guy out of a role in which he’s succeeding, by moving Crowe to a late-inning role. After putting up a 3.31 ERA, .569 opponents’ OPS, 1.20 WHIP and 8.7 K/9 in the season’s first half, Crowe slumped to 6.66, .903, 1.81 and 6.7 in the second.
2023
Crowe started the season with the Pirates and wasn’t very effective, largely due to nine walks in 9.2 IP. In late April, he went on the injured list until late April due to shoulder discomfort. He started a rehab assignment at the beginning of July, then on July 19 the Pirates designated him for assignment. He cleared waivers and was assigned to Indianapolis, where he spent the rest of the season. Crowe didn’t pitch well in AAA, with a 4.33 ERA and 1.67 WHIP.
Stats
Transactions
June 8, 2013: Drafted by the Cleveland Indians in the 31st round, 921st overall pick.
June 11, 2016: Drafted by the Cleveland Indians in the 21st round, 632nd overall pick.
June 13, 2017: Drafted by the Washington Nationals in the 2nd round, 65th overall pick; signed June 28.
August 22, 2020: Contract purchased by the Washington Nationals.
December 24, 2020: Traded by the Washington Nationals with Eddy Yean to the Pittsburgh Pirates for Josh Bell.
July 25, 2023: Outrighted to AAA by the Pittsburgh Pirates.