DATE: Tuesday, April 22, 1997               TAG: 9704220286

SECTION: SPORTS                  PAGE: C4   EDITION: FINAL 
SOURCE: BY LARRY BUMP, CORRESPONDENT 
DATELINE: ROCHESTER, N.Y.                   LENGTH:   47 lines

CRAWFORD THAWS OUT, BURNS WINGS

After Joe Crawford struggled through the second inning last night, two good things happened to him.

First, his Norfolk Tides teammates scored twice to wipe out the Rochester Red Wings' 1-0 lead en route to a 5-1 victory. And Crawford made a discovery.

``I thawed back out,'' Crawford said on a night when the game-time temperature was 41 degrees. ``I hadn't pitched in cold weather this year. I'd been in Florida, then with New York out in California, and my first start here was in Norfolk for a day game. And I can't pitch in sleeves.''

His discovery?

``I found a hand drier in the men's room off the dugout. So instead of having to come all the way back (to the clubhouse), I just went in there and held my hand out and let the hand drier keep it warm.''

Then, he rediscovered the changeup that kept Rochester's batters off balance.

After giving up a leadoff single to B.J. Waszgis in the bottom of the second, the lefthander saw a potential double-play grounder to Luis Lopez turn into an error. Then Tommy Davis grounded out and Willis Otanez drove in the first run with a sacrifice fly.

But the Red Wings didn't score again, and the Tides improved their record to 12-6 and their West Division lead to one game.

Norfolk didn't exactly pound the ball either. The Tides had six hits, but combined them with nine walks and sacrifice flies by Lopez in the third inning, Roberto Petagine in the eighth and Benny Agbayani in the ninth.

Shawn Gilbert led off the third with a seeing-eye single over second base. Todd Pratt then drilled a double into the left field corner to drive home the tying run.

Gary Thurman walked, and he and Pratt pulled a surprise double steal to set up Lopez's sacrifice fly and a 2-1 lead.

The Tides again bunched two hits - Agbayani's single and Petagine's run-scoring double - in the sixth, to take a 3-1 lead. And while starter Giovanni Carrara was struggling through a 30-pitch inning, Crawford (2-0) was back in the men's room warming his hand.

He pitched himself out of trouble in the bottom of that inning, throwing a double-play ball to Davis. And after Crawford gave up a leadoff single to Tony Tarasco to open the eighth, Jeff Tam came in, got a double-play grounder out of Aaron Ledesma and finished the game for his second save.

The four-game series continues tonight, with Tides righthander Cory Lidle (3-1) opposing righty Steve Schrenk.

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