01:00 AM EST on Tuesday, February 28, 2006

BY STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Manny walked into camp yesterday morning at about 7:45.

He was dressed and standing in front of his locker a little after 8 o'clock, and when the rest of his teammates left the clubhouse, Manny went right along with them, stretching and doing exercises before playing catch to loosen up.

Then he went to the mound and snapped off some outstanding curveballs to go along with his sizzling fastballs during a batting-practice session.

Oh, you were thinking the other Manny? The one who remains MIA, though he's supposed to be working out tomorrow, the March 1 date agreed upon by the slugging left fielder and the ballclub?

No, this was Manny Delcarmen , the promising right-hander from Hyde Park, Mass., who had three stints with Boston last season at the age of 23. Delcarmen, a 6-foot-2, 190-pounder, went 0-0 with a 3.00 earned-run average in 10 games, totaling nine innings.

Delcarmen, who moved up the ladder from Portland (4-4, 3.23 E.R.A., 3 saves) and Pawtucket (3-1, 1.29, 2 saves) last season, has a chance this spring to win a spot in Boston's bullpen. And that sits well with Delcarmen, who was mentioned in trade talks with Cleveland for Coco Crisp , though ultimately he obviously wasn't included in the deal.

"I really want to pitch in this organization," said Delcarmen, who turned 24 almost two weeks ago. "There's a little pressure, but I kind of like it. It's nice for a hometown kid to play for the hometown team."

He knows, however, that he has to recapture something he mysteriously lost last season -- his curveball.

"I had a good first (big-league) outing in Tampa (July 6, a scoreless inning with one whiff) and then in my first game back in Boston (July 31), maybe I started overthrowing. I lost it," said Delcarmen.

"I spent a lot of time in the offseason working on it, and I've got it back," said Delcarmen, who fanned 81 in a total of 69 innings last year.

The initial spring scouting reports on Delcarmen's curveball are good.

"I saw him throw some great breaking balls today," said manager Terry Francona after yesterday's workout at the Sox' minor-league complex. "I heard he had it, but I hadn't seen it."

Business to tend to

Today's workout will begin at noon because Players' Association officials will be in camp for their annual spring visit. The meeting is scheduled to begin at 9 o'clock.

The Red Sox do not have a players' representative. Johnny Damon was the player rep last year, but, as every Sox fan knows, he now wears the Yankee pinstripes. Trot Nixon was the assistant. Nixon said the team would likely vote for a player rep at the end of camp.

Nixon said he wasn't sure of the agenda for today's meeting, but expected there to be discussion of the drug testing policy as well as the World Baseball Classic. The Basic Agreement expires at the end of the season, but there has no talk of a strike or a lockout, unlike recent expirations of the document.

Francona on a roll

There were 10 teams participating in a Red Sox bowling tournament, and Francona's team wound up on top. The Sox' manager helped his team by averaging 159. He bowled games of 161, 178 and 137. He had the second-highest average, to the impressive 204 turned in by Paul Anderson , who works parking-lot duty at Fort Myers.

Francona's teammates were coaches DeMarlo Hale and Lou Frazier , and Don Kalkstein , the team's director of performance enhancement. New center fielder Crisp bowled games of 133, 139 and 167, tops among the few players participating.

Around the horn

The drills yesterday featured rundown work, with the pitchers, catchers and infielders involved. Players from the minor-league mini-camp were brought over to serve as the baserunners. . . . Kevin Youkilis got work at first base and third base during the rundown drills. . . . Alex Cora , who was splitting time with Alex Gonzalez at shortstop, has lightning-quick hands. . . . David Ortiz was working at first base with the rest of the regulars in one group. Gold Glover winner J.T. Snow was working at first base on another diamond, with the non-roster infielders. . . . Maybe no conclusion should be drawn, but non-roster left-hander Mike Holtz was working on the diamond where the majority of the "varsity" pitchers were participating in the rundown drills. The Sox don't have a holdover left-hander for the bullpen except Lenny DiNardo , who is not the classic type of situational southpaw. Holtz has not pitched in the big leagues since 2002, and did not pitch at all in 2005. He has been in 350 major-league games, mostly with the Angels' organization, from 1996-2001. He split time with Oakland and San Diego in 2002. . . . Ex-Sox player and coach Mike Stanley visited camp.

skrasner@projo.com / (401) 277-7340