Carl Crawford Profiled in Sports Illustrated

The issue is released tomorrow and features a nice profile on Carl Crawford's stolen base ability by Albert Chen. Aptly titled The Running Man, here are a few notable excerpts from the piece:

"People don't know, but running can take its toll," Crawford says. "My muscles need some recovery time. Earlier this year people were saying I could go for 100 steals. I was like, ‘You really want to see me use a walker when I get to 90?' "

Says Friedman, "Any concerns that I had [about Maddon's philosophy] are gone. The execution has been nearly flawless."

In his prime Henderson went from a standing lead at first base to second in 3.2 or 3.3 seconds. According to bench coach Dave Martinez, Crawford reaches full speed after two strides and covers the same ground in 3.1 seconds.

Crawford also talks about his decision to play baseball instead of football -- citing the financial aspect -- and features a few quotes from James Click who wrote a chapter about stolen bases in Baseball Between the Numbers.

Oh, and one non-Crawford related quote:

While B.J. Upton, the Tampa Bay Rays' spindly centerfielder and leadoff hitter, possesses a fluid running style that inspires teammates to channel their inner poet-"he glides like a deer out there, gracefully and effortlessly," teammate Ben Zobrist says

Deep.

Check out SI.com and look for the magazine article starting tomorrow.