Top SF Giants prospect Reggie Crawford ( Giants Top-10 Prospect) is unusual in a lot of ways. He's a left-handed pitcher who can throw in the high 90s, while he's also a power-hitting first baseman. There's not a lot of major league players who do that. A former amateur record-holding swimmer, Crawford also has a unique willingness to sacrifice comfort to try and get the most out of his body. Even in the world of professional sports, Crawford revealed during an appearance on the Wake n Jake podcast earlier this week that he seems willing to go further than most. That is, unless drinking chicken smoothies is the trend about to sweep the nation.
Crawford, the Giants' first-round selection in the 2022 draft, was asked about the unique challenges that come with being a two-way player. He explained why it appealed to him and discussed the added strain it takes on a player's body. That led to some questions about his unique regiment. Specifically, chicken shakes.
"I'm at the point now where I look at chicken, and it's difficult to eat it," Crawford said. "I feel like I've had so much in my life."
But as a professional athlete, Crawford doesn't have a choice not to eat, especially when he needs to be in shape for both pitching and hitting. While not explicitly necessary - baseball players like Prince Fielder have gone vegetarian, for a few months at least - chicken is an excellent source of low-fat protein. So when a friend visited, he had a novel idea for the poultry-loving Crawford.
"Dude, I got something for you," Crawford said his friend told him. "Chicken shakes."
Here's the horrifying recipe: Cooked chicken. Water. Spinach. Olive oil. All in a blender. Crawford recalls it was "like 40 ounces of chicken shake." Then Crawford chugged the nightmare concoction.
Normally smoothies have ingredients like, fruit, vegetables, and sometimes milk or yogurt. This unholy chicken-spinach-oil blend feels like something a truly twisted individual would drink. Or, former Giants manager Gabe Kapler, a carb-hater who notoriously peeled Chicken McNuggets before eating them. Maybe that's why the team was so excited to use a high pick on Crawford!
Apparently, chicken smoothies aren't just a breakfast treat or a dinner choice for Crawford. They're an anytime food, for whenever Crawford feels like he needs more calories or protein. He just chugs a meat shake and continues with his day.
While this information is unsettling, it may be a positive omen for Crawford's big-league success. If he's not fazed by drinking his chicken, then facing top hitters or elite major-league pitching shouldn't bother him at all. What's scarier: Standing in against a 98 MPH fastball, or drinking a quarter-gallon of blended chicken?
But while Crawford is enough of an eccentric to make poultry chugging a core part of his food intake, he's not eccentric enough to enjoy them.
Despite the disconcerting efficiency of a chicken smoother, it does not seem like it will be a trend throughout the SF Giants player development apparatus. Asked if his chicken shakes were good, Reggie Crawford had a succinct answer.
"No."
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