Carl Crawford’s Rehab Progressing Well

Carl Crawford hadn’t done much in his first two rehab games in Albuquerque, striking out twice with a single in five plate appearances, and that’s not a big deal. Yeah, it’s about Crawford getting his timing down after missing well over a month since his ankle injury, but it’s mostly about showing that the ankle is healthy. So far tonight against El Paso, he’s doing just that.

In the first inning, after reaching on an error by second baseman Chris Nelson, Crawford took off for second on the first pitch, without even a throw:

In the top of the second against Donn Roach, Crawford drove a blast to right-center and legged out a triple:

In the fourth, he singled but was thrown out caught stealing by catcher Rocky Gale. In the sixth, against Brandon Kloess and his super-villain mustache, Crawford grounded out to first base, and that’s where the game currently stands, with the Isotopes leading 7-5 in the bottom of the sixth.

Crawford isn’t going to be activated for the short two-game series in Detroit that starts on Tuesday night, but if all goes well the next few days, he could be back as soon as Thursday back in Los Angeles when the Dodgers kick off their final series before the All-Star break with four against the Padres. When he does, Don Mattingly is going to have some uncomfortable lineup decisions to make. Brim will have more on that in the next day or two, so stay tuned for some math. For now, whether it’s because you want Crawford back or enough depth to try and make a trade, Crawford sure seems like he’s progressing nicely.