FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Red Sox principal owner John Henry said he plans to apologize to outfielder Carl Crawford for his offseason remark that he wasn't behind signing him prior to the 2011 season for seven years and a financial commitment of $142 million.
"I do," Henry said when asked if he regrets what he said about his star left fielder. "I should have never made those comments. It was an off-the-cuff remark I shouldn't have made so when I see him, I'm going to apologize to him for it."
In the weeks following his October comments, Henry attempted to explain his remarks by saying he didn't feel Crawford was the right fit in the Red Sox plan but still felt he was an outstanding player, a point he referenced again on Saturday morning.
"I think I explained it and people don't want to seem to hear the explanation anyway," Henry said.
Henry, team President Larry Lucchino and Chairman Tom Werner met with the team for approximately 45 minutes Saturday morning before the team went out for its first full-squad workout of the spring.
Henry recalled after the press conference that this marks the 10th anniversary of his ownership of the team, which began prior to the 2002 season. For more from the team of Alex Speier, Rob Bradford and Mike Petraglia on the scene in Fort Myers, visit the Red Sox team page at weei.com/redsox [1] and the Full Count [2] blog.
Links:
[1] http://www.weei.com/redsox
[2] http://www.fullcount.weei.com
[3] http://www.weei.com/category/boston/red-sox