No worries this time about holding Carl Crawford at third base. The Red Sox left fielder trotted home in Pawtucket after Ryan Lavarnway crushed a home run during the fourth inning Friday night against the Durham Bulls.
In the third at-bat of his rehab assignment with the PawSox, Crawford, rehabbing his strained hamstring, hit a grounder deep into the hole between shortstop and third base. Bulls shortstop Ray Olmedo had no play on Crawford buzzing down the first-base line, so Olmedo threw to second base to force out lead runner Daniel Nava.
The Pawtucket crowd booed (as one would expect) but the throw appeared to beat Nava.
Crawford, who was held at third base the previous inning on a single to left field, did not have to worry about playing it safe this time. Lavarnway smoked a two-run homer to score Crawford and give the PawSox a 3-1 lead.
Crawford, who singled home Che-Hsuan Lin in the first inning, is responsible for two of the PawSox' three runs.
