Carl Crawford isn’t mad at the city of Boston anymore. But he was for a long time.

The retired Major League Baseball outfielder signed a lucrative seven-year, $142 million contract with the Boston Red Sox prior to the 2011 season. But injuries began to plague Crawford, and his lack of productivity on the field in Boston was met with harsh scrutiny from fans and media alike.

Crawford was traded to the Los Angles Dodgers in August of 2012 with Adrian Gonalez, Josh Beckett and Nick Punto and played 3 1/2 seasons in L.A. before being released last season, causing him to hang up his spikes for good.

In a recent interview with Bleacher Report’s Scott Miller, Crawford opened up on what it was like in Boston, his sharp decline and where his life is now. And the three-time All-Star admitted that he wasn’t a fan of Boston.

“I carried hate for that city for a long time,” Crawford told Miller. “But now, I’m over that. I feel much better, because I learned that you can’t hate something or you never get over it. It definitely was a learning experience, definitely that. I got that out of it, if nothing else.”

Crawford once was one of the most dynamic players in the game. He finished his career hitting .290/.330/.435, and was one of the heroes of the Tampa Bay Rays’ 2008 American League Championship Series win over the Boston Red Sox. The speedy outfielder hit .345 in that series.

He led the league in triples four times and was named the MVP of the 2009 All-Star Game.

Crawford was electric and exciting, and due to years of playing on artificial turf, his body betrayed him right as he got to Boston.

But that’s all in the past now.

Thumbnail photo via Kevin Sousa/USA TODAY Sports Images