Crisp glad to get some relief

Coco Crisp said he figured at best, his suspension might be reduced three games, so he said he was glad at least two games were knocked off, his penalty shrinking from seven games to five games. "I guess that's pretty good,'' he said.

Asked what MLB executive John McHale Jr. had offered by way of explanation for reducing the suspension, Crisp professed not to know ("They sent me a paper"), while manager Terry Francona said he wasn't sure whether he was at liberty to say. MLB has yet to weigh in publicly.

Coco's suspension starts tomorrow and takes him out of next week's three-game series against Tampa Bay, the other side in the June 5 brawl at Fenway Park that led to a total of eight players being suspended -- Crisp, Sean Casey and Jon Lester on the Sox side, and five players from the Rays. McHale upheld the three-game suspension of Akinori Iwamura, the lone Ray who had appealed.

"I didn't think anything was going to happen in Tampa if I played in those games,'' Crisp said when asked if MLB had timed his suspension as a hedge against a resumption of hostilities.

"For precautionary reasons, I guess this lets everything cool down.''

The reason he didn't think there would be further problems?

"I think everybody is going to go out and play baseball,'' he said. "This is a whole new series. There's other stuff you can point to.''

The Rays begin the night just a half-game behind the Sox in the AL East, and Crisp gave them their props.

"They've been playing well,'' he said. "They've come together. They've got good players, and it was a matter of when their young guys were going to jell.''

Francona said he had originally planned to play Jacoby Ellsbury tonight, but since Crisp will be forced to sit the next five, put him in the lineup. Francona said Manny Ramirez assured him he could play left field, that his tender hamstring felt very good.