Knuckle-cracking is something of a sign of health for Crisp, one he's been without for most of the last couple years after breaking the index finger of his left hand. That finger broke in 2006, his first season in Boston, and Crisp says it didn't fully heal until the end of last year, when he could crack that knuckle again for the first time in years.

"Once that happened, I felt like I was able to swing without thinking about it," he says. "It might not seem like that big a deal, but once you're just relying on muscle memory, I felt like my swing was a lot better."

If you're not into knuckle-cracking as the bellwether for success for your leadoff hitter, consider that Crisp hit .341 last August and September, then .417 in the playoffs. This after hitting .252 for the first four months.

Maybe it's just coincidence. It's a small sample size, of course. But if there's some truth to this, maybe it's an indication that Crisp comes to Kansas City more like the player who hit around .300 with occasional power in Cleveland before the last three seasons in Boston.

Either way, Crisp, who turned 29 in November, joins the Royals as the highest-profile acquisition in an offseason that's seen one-fifth of the expected roster change from last year.

"He can play Gold Glove defense in center field," Royals pitcher Zack Greinke says.

Knuckle-cracking aside, that's the main reason the Royals were willing to trade reliever Ramon Ramirez for Crisp, the $5.75 million salary this year and $8 million option for 2010 be darned.

Crisp has never won Baseball's highest honor for defensive players, but there are scouts and executives around the game who think he should have -- particularly in 2007.

No matter now. Crisp comes as an upgrade over David DeJesus defensively in center field, with the bonus of moving DeJesus to left, where he's much better defensively and thought to hit better, also.

"I agree," Royals manager Trey Hillman says. "I think it's a case where it's going to keep David fresher, not only defensively but offensively as well."

Hillman likes Crisp's ability to bunt for hits and hit for some power, which the manager expects to play out more with doubles and triples than home runs.

Crisp's career highs are 16 homers and 42 doubles, both in 2005, his final season in Cleveland.

Crisp thinks he can get back to that kind of production in Kansas City. He's healthy now, that's the biggest thing. There was the broken finger, but also a broken toe and a kidney stone -- it always seemed to be something the last few seasons.

That's all in the past, Crisp hopes, and the Royals need it to be. They like his defense and the potential for his offense -- and they also like the resume.

Crisp has played on winning teams the last four years, starting in 2005 with the 93-win Indians. He played 145 games as the starting center fielder for Boston's 2007 World Series championship team and had late-season success for the Red Sox last year.

He was never the best player on any of those teams, of course, but he was almost always a regular in the lineup, an important part of teams with swagger.

It's a bit of a weird thing now, at 29, to be looked at as one of the veterans, one of the leaders. But that's the spot Crisp is in with the Royals.

He's happy with that, mostly because it means he'll be playing every day -- Boston had Jacoby Ellsbury to take over center.

"It's different," Crisp says. "Every year you have different expectations. You look at how to deal with those things. It comes with the territory. I don't think it's too much pressure or anything, especially not where I've been, because pressure is all you have in Boston."

Crisp has an interesting background. He made headlines last year with a big punch thrown at Rays pitcher James Shields, and was involuntarily involved in one of the all-time strange scenes when the Mariners' moose mascot accidentally ran over him with an ATV.

Crisp's father was a boxer whose last match ended in a knockout, with the elder Crisp saying he saw hamburgers while dazed instead of stars, which is why he opened a chain of burger joints in California.

His mother is a former sprinter, his grandfather is in the U.S. Track and Field Masters Hall of Fame for inventing the starting blocks used in the Olympics, and his sister is a professional ice skater.

Crisp didn't know much about the Royals when he was dealt. That happens more than you'd think in Baseball.

Just yesterday, one of the new Royals introduced himself -- first name only -- to an established Royals player who had a short conversation and still didn't know who he was talking to. Another one of the new guys mentioned Joey Gathright, who signed with the Cubs, when talking about the Royals' outfield depth.

But Crisp has looked around a lot the last few months -- the Internet and his cell phone have been helpful -- and he says his new team can surprise some folks in the AL Central.

"Whatever it takes to get that ring," he says. "At the end of the day, that's the only thing people care about."

@ Go to KansasCity.com for video from the FanFest.

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