Nothing else matters: Crisp just wants to play

It must have been a tough winter for Coco Crisp.

For most of the offseason, he faced the immediate possibility of having to pack up his bags and move to a new city. He saw his skills and personality repeatedly dissected on the national stage during the Santana talks. And once those talks fell apart, he knew that he was probably going to lose his job. Not the best vacation you could ask for.

A lot of people would have spoken up about one, if not all of those issues. But Crisp remained silent, just as he did when he was benched in the World Series.

Instead, he left most of the talking to his agent, who repeatedly maintained that his client just wanted to play. It didn’t matter where.

It sounded like rhetoric when it came from his agent’s mouth.

Moving isn’t fun.

Being a stranger on a new club isn’t fun.

Losing your job to a rookie in the World Series after you worked your ass off all season to get there isn’t fun.

Getting traded and playing on turf in an empty ballpark after experiencing two summers worth of sellouts and a World Series victory isn’t fun.

Playing couldn’t be all that Crisp cares about, right?

Well, after months of uncertainty, Crisp is still on the Red Sox roster—and he’s finally decided to speak for himself. Turns out, just as his agent said all winter, there is only one thing he cares about:

He just wants to play.

“I would honestly rather be somewhere else and play than be on the bench. I’ll take whatever comes and deal with it. It’s no knock against Boston. The fans have treated me well. It’s ultimately for myself.”

I don’t remember the fans ever really treating him very well, but the sentiment is nice. And as a fan, how can you not appreciate a guy who just wants to play? A guy who, by his own account, was “considered no better than a fourth outfielder” when he first came to the big leagues?

A guy who made this play?

If he won’t get to start in Boston, Crisp is still hoping for a trade. He speculates that he might be moved in a trade to fill the hole left by Schilling.

“I know with Schill going through what he’s going through, they might want to fill another spot in the back of the bullpen and bring one of those guys to the front to fill a starting position. I don’t know it’s going to work out, but I could definitely see (a trade) happening.”

The Red Sox have stated that they have not made up their minds as to who will start the season in center, and that it will largely be up to the players to duke it out on the field.

I happen to believe them.

The Herald thinks they’re full of crap.

We’ll see what happens.

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