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Crawford Ready To Go, But Team Not Going To Rush It

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By MARC LANCASTER 252

The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 27, 2008

DETROIT - Carl Crawford got good news Friday, but it remains to be seen whether being activated from the disabled list and making his first appearance since Aug. 9 will get him what he wants next week.

Though Crawford said his right hand is at "100 percent," Rays officials downplayed the possibility of the left fielder returning in time to make the Division Series roster.

Crawford saw action Friday as a pinch-runner in the ninth and will be allowed to take batting practice with a coach pitching this afternoon, his first authorized swings against overhand deliveries since undergoing surgery six weeks ago. The Rays will see how he responds to that, then have him hit in the batting cage Sunday before reconvening Monday to determine the next step.

They could have him get some at-bats in the Fall Instructional League, which is under way in St. Petersburg, but the Rays don't sound inclined to push Crawford just to get him ready for the first round.

"It's definitely possible, but at this point I'm not that optimistic," said Rays executive vice president Andrew Friedman. "You need to get through Saturday and Sunday, and then you need to try to simulate things to get him game-ready in a short period of time. Obviously, if it lines up that way, it'd be great, but we've got to get through Sunday to have a better sense of if it's realistic or not."

Crawford took soft-toss and hit off a tee Friday and reiterated that he felt fine. Manager Joe Maddon watched the session and said Crawford "looked normal to me." Maddon said Crawford will be available for pinch-running and defense in the meantime, but the player believes he's ready to go.

"Oh, definitely," Crawford said. "If I'm swinging the bat, I'm doing everything right now. It's just, they want me to move real slow and cautious, and I'm cool with that, because I'm confident that things will get better."

RAYS BLAST 'ERRONEOUS' REPORT: Rocco Baldelli and the Rays on Friday denied what they called an "erroneous" report on WFTS, Ch. 28 that Baldelli had been diagnosed with muscular dystrophy.

Trumpeted as an "exclusive," the report quoted Dr. Allan Weiss, a physician who has been treating Baldelli, discussing the effects of mitochondrial myopathy on the player. Baldelli revealed in spring training he had been diagnosed with a mitochondrial disorder. He recently taped a public service announcement for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, which includes mitochondrial myopathy among the 43 diseases for which it attempts to raise awareness.

Asked directly Friday afternoon if he had been diagnosed with muscular dystrophy, Baldelli said, "No." Of the WFTS report, Baldelli said, "That's awful."

The Rays issued a statement from team president Matt Silverman that read as follows:

"The report issued by WFTS-TV Channel 28 is irresponsible and erroneous. We expect an immediate retraction and an apology to Rocco and his family."

Weiss also relayed a statement through the team saying the report was in error.

"He has mitochondrial myopathy, not muscular dystrophy," Weiss said. "They are different diseases, both covered by MDA."

WARMING UP TO IT: When David Price starts a game, he has a very specific warm-up routine he follows. He knows that will have to go out the window if he makes the playoff roster as a reliever, but he believes he can handle it.

"It's just, you're getting ready for an inning - three or four hitters, maybe six if you go two innings," Price said. "So you're really just kind of concentrating on your first two pitches, and I feel I can get ready in a short enough amount of time that I can get used to this."

The Rays want to see Price warm up as a reliever a couple of times this weekend, and he got his first chance Friday. Coming on for Andy Sonnanstine in the sixth, it took Price some time to get settled in. He hit the first batter he faced and walked the second man - the .140-hitting Dane Sardinha - on four pitches before retiring the next three in order.

BAD HAIR DAY: All J.P. Howell wanted from the stylist visiting the Rays' clubhouse Friday was an "aggressive" mohawk - strictly scalp on the sides and hair in the middle. What he got for his $25 ended up looking so bad he had her shave his entire head down to the skin.

"Aw, man. I can't even say what I looked like," Howell said. "A mess. I looked weird, put it that way."

Howell blamed his head for the problem, saying "It was all my fault," but vowed to grow his hair back quickly enough to sport a proper mohawk for the playoffs.

Marc Lancaster

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