I know, I know….it’s less than 12 hours since I called Manny out in this very space (see An Open Letter to Manny Ramirez) and he’s already making me feel a little regretful for my stance.
I won’t take back anything that I wrote and I’ll stand by it. Manny took my relationship with him as a fan and disregarded it, irreparably tearing it apart with his ambivalence towards us all in his pre-game comments.
“Enough is enough. I
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I agree with you Bob, if Manny’s options are picked up the agent who negotiated those options will get the commission and Boras will not make any $$ until Manny is 38…significantly hindering his ability to earn off Manny. I have thought that Boras has probably been telling manny that he can get 4 years 80 mil as a free agent rather then two years/40 mil on the options and then a 2 year contract at 38 that won’t touch anywhere near 20 mil/year in all likelihood. I imagine Manny is pretty easy fodder with a puppeteer like Boras dangling the strings. Bottom line is Manny would probably do just as well if his 2 20 mil options were exercised and then was able to get 2 years/30 mil at 38…..not sure he will clear four years/70 mil as a free agent considering his actions and the fact he will likely have to be a DH if he is not playing in Fenway
People are forgetting that Manny recently had a meeting with Scott Boras.Did the agent from hell encourage the episodes of feigned illness from his client in hopes that he could negotiate a better contract than the 20 mil option the Sox have? I think Manny the drama queen has a coach on the sidelines and its not Tito.
The question is, whose DH problems can Manny with his Hammy, Knees, etc. resolve for 3 – 4 years? I can think of several, but this eliminates the Mets and other NL teams.
I have a feeling that a new contract and new environment would be the best medicine for all that ails Manny…I think he will be miraculously healthy, at least for a little while. He can still play the field (albeit poorly, outside of Fenway), I agree that if a team is going to give him four years it is going to be an AL team, or Omar Minaya…because he has the budget and seems to let his infatuations cloud his decision making.
No one is getting any commission from Manny’s options because the agent who negotiated them (Jeff Moorad) is now Diamondbacks President. This all seems like a moot point, I don’t see him getting traded because there’s no way that Theo is dealing him to an AL contender and all of the NL teams who would be interested have nothing that would entice the Red Sox. Unless Theo can grab a bunch of prospects for Ramirez and also secure another deal for Teixeira (then move Youk to LF) or possibly Jason Bay, then forget it.
If the Red Sox have decided that this is Manny’s last season here then let him play out this year and move on, here’s two interesting options I can think of.
1. (not sure if this one is kosher) Pick up Manny’s option and trade him. With the ridiculous free agent contracts that happen these days Manny at $20 mil is a bargain and someone will be willing to give up some value for him.
2. Sign Teixeira or Bay. Neither of them will ever hit like Manny in his prime, but they could reasonably duplicate what he did last year and this year and both bring more than a bat to the table. Bay would be an upgrade defensively over Ramirez in Left and with Tex you can move Youk to Left Field, knowing his work ethic he can probably be solid. I’d prefer Tex to Bay simply cause I’m always a little weary of NL hitter switching leagues and Tex has already performed in the AL. Your lineup next year then looks like this
1.Ellsbury (he will break out of this slump and regain the leadoff spot)
2. Dustin
3. Papi
4. Tex/Bay
5. Drew
6. Lowell
7. Youk
8. Lowire (yeah!)
9. Whoever is catching
That’s a very good lineup that will definitely wear out pitchers..