"Carl Crawford insists he isn't one for reminiscing.

Typically, the Red Sox left fielder doesn't sit around and get misty-eyed while thinking about bygone days. But nine years is a long time to spend with one team, and so, try as he might, he knew that returning to Tropicana Field for the first time with an opponent of the Tampa Bay Rays would feel anything but ordinary.

"I can't lie," Crawford (0-for-3) said before leaving the visitors clubhouse last night. "It didn't feel like a normal game."

For one thing, the Red Sox actually lost, snapping their longest-in-the-majors, nine-game winning streak. For another, they were shut out, 4-0, by Tampa Bay starter James Shields, after scoring 83 runs over the previous nine games.

Crawford, as much as anyone, knew the Rays and Shields still were capable of this. Despite slashing their payroll — Crawford hardly was the only player who bolted from the Rays last winter — the Rays have a starting rotation that will give them a chance to win plenty of games, and Shields is at the head of that group.

In the opener of a three-game series against the Red Sox, Shields featured a nasty changeup and allowed only five hits. In three cases, the Sox had potential rallies snuffed out by double plays.

The Sox' best chance to score came in the first inning, but Crawford was unable to deliver."