For the moment, he is a savior, but Nick Green understands his situation, which may be as important as his glove, his arm and his bat if he wants long-term success in Boston. Not to mention peace of mind.
Green is a utility infielder thrust into a most difficult circumstance, replacing the injured Jed Lowrie last Sunday in Anaheim, Calif., at shortstop, a position that all spring was being battled over by Lowrie and Julio Lugo until the former injured his knee. Now, with Lowrie gone for no one quite knows how long with a recurring wrist problem and Lugo in Fort Myers on a rehab stint, Green is front and center on one of the most watched teams in Baseball. How long he stays there, he knows, may have less to do with how he plays and more to do with circumstances beyond his control, which is the life he's lived for most of his professional career.
Once there was a time when such a thing might have gnawed at Green like termites under the porch, shaking his foundation and putting his future at risk. But after spending 10 years jumping back and forth between the minor leagues and five major league teams, Green understands the vagaries of his profession. So he insisted yesterday the two hits he got Friday night, which helped the Red Sox come back from a 7-0 second-inning deficit to beat the Orioles, were something he would not dwell upon, just like he cannot concern himself with an 0-for-3, like he had last night in the Sox' 6-4 win against Baltimore.
``The older you get the more you realize you want to be in the big leagues,'' the 30-year-old Green. ``I rather be up here as a utility infielder than playing every day in Triple A (as he did last year in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre).
``This time of year if the weather stinks at least it stinks in a big league atmosphere.
``I haven't asked what Jed's deal is or when Lugo is coming back. I'll play shortstop until they say I can't.''
At the moment the Red Sox aren't in a position to say much of anything but ``attaboy'' to Green.
Manager Terry Francona's feeling seems to be the less said the better, the assumption being if you tell a guy to relax he probably won't.
``You can't tell a guy to relax,'' Francona said, making clear that his approach to Green has been to write his name in the lineup and assume the veteran utility player will do the job the best he can. ``He's done a terrific job up to this point. He hadn't played a lot of shortstop but he's done a good job for us. We didn't expect to see him in this situation a week into the season.''
Yet here he is and thus far holding up his end of a bargain he seems to understand well. He intends to play his best for as long as they let him play, and after that he'll wait for the next opportunity.
