Speaking at the New Stars for Young Stars event at Jillian’s — which was presented by the Jimmy Fund Council of Greater Boston — Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine confirmed that he has talked to outfielder Carl Crawford. The phone conversation took place with both Red Sox general manager Ben Cherington and Crawford’s agent, Brian Peters, on the line, according to Valentine.
“I finally got that call into Carl,” the manager said. “Carl sounded great.
“He seemed very determined. He seemed very understanding of the fact that things got spinning a little fast for him last year in a new environment. He seemed to be determined to correct that.”
Valentine had first mentioned that he was having difficulty arranging a meeting with Crawford while talking at the winter meetings in early December. He did, however, state in an interview on WEEI that after talking to Peters a get-together was in the works at some point after New Year’s.
The Crawford conversation comes after Valentine’s well-publicized, face-to-face New Year’s Day meeting with pitcher Josh Beckett, who the manager said was “pissed” in their initial introduction after the manager’s hiring because of comments made during an ESPN broadcast. Regarding the meeting with the starter in Texas, Valentine said while attending Andrew Bailey’s charity bowling event, “I did backflips.”
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