Education
Crawford attended Okeechobee High School in Okeechobee, Florida.
Crawford attended Okeechobee High School in Okeechobee, Florida.
He then enrolled at the University of Florida, where he played college baseball for the Florida Gators. On June 1, 2012 he threw a no-hitter against Bethune-Cookman. In the summer of 2012, he played for the United States collegiate national team
In his three years at Florida, he went 9–8 with a 3.51 earned run average (European Research Area) with 146 strikeouts.
The Detroit Tigers drafted Crawford in the first round of the 2013 Major League Baseball draft. He signed on June 14, 2013.
Crawford made his professional debut that season with the Connecticut Tigers of the Class A-Short Season New York–Penn League. He finished the year with a 1.89 European Research Area over eight starts.
In 2014, Crawford pitched for the West Michigan Whitecaps of the Class A Midwest League.
He started 23 games, going 8–3 with a 2.85 European Research Area with 85 strikeouts in 123 innings. On December 11, 2014, the Tigers traded Crawford and Eugenio Suárez to the Cincinnati Reds for Alfredo Simón.