Kielty injured; Crisp may have staying power
The Coco Crisp trade watch, such as it is, probably can be called off for the time being.
Bobby Kielty, the veteran center fielder in waiting in Pawtucket, underwent surgery on his left hand and is expected to be out 4-6 weeks. Kielty, who was placed on Pawtucket's disabled list April 19 with what was described as soreness in his hand, told club officials he is uncertain of how he hurt himself. He did not respond to a message yesterday afternoon.
"He had a bone spur or something on top of his hand that was causing the ligament to snap back and forth," general manager Theo Epstein said, confirming the timetable for Kielty's return.
With Kielty out of the mix, the Sox have less incentive to try to move Crisp, who returned to the lineup yesterday for the first time since April 15 (tight right hamstring) and had a big day, hitting two doubles, stealing third twice, driving in two runs, and scoring another.
Until Crisp was hurt, he had started five of the previous six games in center field. His injury allowed rookie Jacoby Ellsbury to start eight in a row in center until yesterday, when he started in right field in place of J.D. Drew. Ellsbury made the most of his opportunity while Crisp was out. He went hitless in eight at-bats in two games in New York, but still jump-started two rallies by getting hit by a pitch, then stealing second. In his next six games, Ellsbury batted .417 (10 for 24), with a double, triple, two home runs, four RBIs, five walks, and four stolen bases. He had an on-base percentage of .417 and a slugging percentage of .517 before going 1 for 5 yesterday.
Drew was 2 for 20 on the homestand, but Francona told Drew four days earlier he'd have yesterday off against Angels lefthander Joe Saunders, whom Drew never faced. The switch-hitting Crisp likely would have led off against Saunders, but Francona noted Crisp's extended layoff factored into his decision to leave Ellsbury in the top spot.
The Sox are scheduled to face three righthanders in Tropicana Field against the Rays - Matt Garza, Edwin Jackson, and James Shields - so it will be interesting to see how Francona divvies up playing time among his center fielders. Although Ellsbury has been hot - Tuesday, he became the first Sox rookie to go deep twice in a game since Kevin Youkilis on Aug. 8, 2004 - Crisp has been no slouch, batting (11 for 27, .407) in his last seven games with an at-bat.
And while much has been made of the fact Ellsbury has yet to be caught stealing in the big leagues - in 17 attempts, the most success without being caught by a Sox rookie since 1920 - Crisp has been caught only once in his last 18 attempts, going back to July 6, and overall, his success rate of 84.4 percent (54 for 64) is the highest in club history for any player with 50 or more attempts.
Crisp said he had no idea how the playing time will shake out.
"[Ellsbury] is playing well, I'm playing well, J.D. and Manny [Ramírez] are playing well - I wish it was softball," Crisp said. "We'll see what happens. It was a little different story about five days ago. Hopefully we'll continue to play well and make it a tough decision."
Asked how Kielty's injury affects his situation, Crisp said: "It doesn't do anything to my situation. We have two different names. There are other minor league guys. JT [Joe Thurston] will be back. He's a good player."
Corey is back
Bryan Corey, distressed when the Sox designated him for assignment earlier this month, is back in the big leagues - with the Sox. With Justin Masterson going back to Portland, Corey's contract will be purchased from Pawtucket - a procedural move that gets him back on the 40-man major league roster - and he'll be in the bullpen tonight against the Rays . . . Josh Beckett threw a side session yesterday and barring any surprises, will make his next start, scheduled for Sunday. Francona said Daisuke Matsuzaka will remain home this weekend as he recovers from the flu. Matsuzaka is well enough to work out, Francona said, and should be on track to start Tuesday at home against Toronto . . . Youkilis, who missed Wednesday's game with a sore back, returned to the lineup yesterday, walked twice, and scored. He also took a tumble into the tarp in an unsuccessful attempt to catch Torii Hunter's foul pop in the seventh . . . Mike Lowell remains on track to begin his rehab tonight in Pawtucket in the first of three games with the PawSox. The plan is for Lowell to DH twice (tonight and Sunday) and play third base tomorrow night, then rejoin the Red Sox when they return home Tuesday. Lowell will be in McCoy Stadium for just one of those three games, tonight against Syracuse. The PawSox are in Buffalo tomorrow night and Sunday . . . David Ortiz swung at a 3-and-0 pitch for the first time this season in the fifth inning, and flied to deep center. Ortiz has a tremendous track record when swinging at 3-and-0 pitches; he is batting .667 (14 for 21) when he puts the ball in play, with five doubles and four home runs.
