Rays/MLB

Pain fading, Crawford talks way into lineup

By MARC TOPKIN
Published April 21, 2006

BOSTON - As much as Carl Crawford's right shoulder hurt Wednesday night, he didn't think he would be able to even think about playing Thursday.

But as good as it felt Thursday after hours of treatment with trainers Ron Porterfield and Paul Harker, Crawford decided there was no way he wasn't going to play and told manager Joe Maddon he wanted to be in the lineup.

"It doesn't feel all the way good, but I was surprised it felt good enough to play," Crawford said. "It loosened up, and the pain is not as sharp."

Crawford, who went 0-for-4 and made one catch, said it is important for all the Rays to learn to play through injuries.

"If we're going to be one of those teams like the Yankees, guys like that get hurt and they'll be in the lineup the next day, and we're trying to get that same kind of thing going around here," Crawford said. "These little ticky-tack injuries shouldn't keep us out like 2-3 months. If we're ever going to be that type of team, a championship-caliber team, you're going to have to play through bumps and bruises. Every little thing can't keep you out of the lineup all the time."

Maddon said injured centerfielder Rocco Baldelli "is feeling a lot better, but we're still being very cautious with that." Baldelli, sidelined since late March with a left hamstring strain, is not expected back until early May. ... Third baseman Aubrey Huff, expected to be out until at least late May with a left knee sprain, is also doing well and his return "might be a little sooner than we anticipated originally," Maddon said. ... Shortstop Julio Lugo, out since opening day with an abdominal strain, has not shown much improvement.

Jonny Gomes hit two homers, his second career multihomer game, and had a blast both times.

The first, unofficially estimated at 432 feet, went over the advertising sign atop the Green Monster and, according to Fox Sports Net's Todd Kalas, dented a minivan on the roof of a parking garage across Lansdowne Street. Kalas said the second, estimated at 417 feet, hit a netting on the garage's first floor.

Gomes has seven homers, five in the past eight games.

Seth McClung has aadopted something of a new pitching philosophy, letting the hitters put the ball in play so his defense can do the work.

The idea is to cut down on walks and big innings, but there is a reason behind it: He isn't using his curveball much, relying mainly on his two-seam fastball and an occasional changeup.

"I don't think my curveball is right right now," said McClung, who starts tonight. "It's not the way it was, even at times last year. That's why my philosophy is to lean on the defense and let those guys make plays. I'm not really trying to go out there and strike out guys. I'm really trying not to get past two or three pitches to each guy."

Though a final decision has not been made, it looks more and more as if Edwin Jackson, the prospect acquired from the Dodgers, will be called up to start Saturday in Texas. Jackson is 1-1 with a 4.50 ERA in three starts for Triple-A Durham.

Saturday will be a big day for injured starter Mark Hendrickson, too. If he gets through an extended spring training game with no discomfort in his shoulder, he will rejoin the rotation Thursday in New York. If not, Jackson would likely stick around.

The Rays lost some organizational pitching depth when Justin Miller exercised an out clause in his contract and left Durham to sign with the Chiba Lotte team in Japan. ... Jose Rodriguez was promoted from Double-A Montgomery. ... Class A SW Michigan's Wade Davis improved his ERA to 0.57, having allowed one earned run in 152/3 innings over three starts.

Scott Kazmir is 3-1 with a 2.64 ERA in eight starts against Boston. ... Catcher Josh Paul is expected to start tonight; he was sick the past few dayys. ... Maddon wasn't complaining about a rough travel schedule that required the Rays to fly from Boston to Texas after Thursday's game, then head back to the Northeast on Sunday night for the series with the Yankees: "It's not like we have to take a bus."

[Last modified April 21, 2006, 01:43:05]