FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Kelly Shoppach is the one guy in the Red Sox clubhouse who can give an accurate, firsthand account of Carl Crawford.

Shoppach, who was a Red Sox catching prospect before he was dealt to the Cleveland Indians as part of the trade that brought Coco Crisp to Boston in 2006, was a teammate of Crawford’s with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2010.

That season in Tampa, Crawford hit .307 with 19 homers, 90 RBIs, 13 triples, 30 doubles and 47 stolen bases. Then, of course, Crawford became a free agent and signed a seven-year deal with the Red Sox worth $142 million.

While his pay increased, Crawford’s numbers greatly decreased in a disappointing first season in Boston.

To the surprise of many, including Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine, Crawford arrived at camp on Monday morning, and after he came off the field from shagging balls and playing catch, Shoppach was there to greet his former teammate with a big hug.

“Hopefully it’s as fun as it was the last time I played with him,” Shoppach said. “The guy is one of the most electric players that I have ever seen in my life, and that includes on the football field and the basketball court. His athleticism and explosiveness is unlike anything I have ever seen in person.”

Shoppach believes Crawford will bounce back in 2012 because he’s never witnessed a pro athlete work as hard as Crawford.

“He’s not a different guy. He’s not a bad guy because he didn’t hit like he would have liked to. That doesn’t make him a bad player,” Shoppach said. “He just didn’t perform the way he would have liked. It doesn’t really matter if he had a great year, he still would have worked this offseason like he had a bad year.

“The one thing about Carl that might not be fully known is he works harder than anyone else. I’ve never seen a guy work as much, and as focused, as he does. This guy is always working and always getting better. His offseason workouts are something to be seen. What he does to make himself the type of player he is, is somewhat God-[given talent] but, yes, he works his butt off at it. I have no doubt, no matter what type of season he had last year, he would come in and try to beat the season before.”

Between 2003 and 2007, Crawford led the majors in stolen bases four times, swiping at least 50 each time. He had a career-low 18 stolen bases in 2011 for the Red Sox.

Crawford also has led the league in triples four times. Before hitting a career-worst .255 for the Red Sox last season, Crawford hit around .300 each year. He said he was all out of whack during his first season in Boston and he plans on fixing what went wrong.

“I just want to get back to what I did before, what I did in Tampa,” Crawford said. “I think those numbers are reachable and I did it every year before last year, so I want to at least play like I normally played before I signed with [Boston].”

During his career with the Red Sox, and then with the Indians, Shoppach had to try to stifle Crawford’s speed on the bases. After signing with the Rays, he enjoyed his one season as Crawford’s teammate.

“We wished him well and he meant a lot to the organization. He’s a good guy who did some great things for Tampa Bay,” Shoppach said. “He was a cornerstone of what they are now and it all started with his athleticism.”