Market for Manny?

When Manny Ramirez shot his way out of Boston I was saddened by the loss. I loved watching Manny every night. He’s a one of a kind player. I was very torn when he left because part of me was going to miss him (because of my “loyalty gene”) while another part of me was angry at how he treated the Red Sox and forced a trade by laying down, and conjuring up fake injuries to get out of playing. He continued to mope down the first base line and even seemed to strike out on purpose in big spots just too really stick it to the Sox. The stories are pretty well known as to why Manny acted this way- he was unhappy that the Sox wouldn’t guarantee picking up both years of the team option 2 years at about 20 million per year. So with the Sox having no choice but to trade Manny he was dealt to the Dodgers. This is when Manny did something that really annoyed me. He began to hit everything in sight! He hit in a way he hadn’t for a good 2 years. He started raking like a lawn boy getting paid by the leaf. His numbers for his 2 months with the Dodgers would be considered a good season by 90% of the players in the league. He put up a season’s worth of production in 2 months! His production was tempered slightly by the fact that Jason Bay was also very productive for the Red Sox. But still, it just showed how much Manny had quit on this team.

So now with the winter meetings taking place it’s music to my ears that there is no real market for Manny. He’s not going to get anywhere near the contract he hoped to get by shooting his way out of Boston and becoming a free agent again. Manny didn’t foresee the economic downturn this country was going to take and he also didn’t stop to think that since the Red Sox had no interest in him, the Yankees could take or leave him. As long as he’s out of the AL east they aren’t going to pay him big bucks. When the Red Sox AND Yankees could take or leave a player, that player’s market value drops WAY down. He’s also proven to be a lousy team player based on his Boston shenanigans. He has forsook his reputation and will probably end up with very little additional (if any) money than he would have gotten if he just played out his contract in Boston and left on good terms. So Manny, was destroying your reputation worth it? Just an example- let’s say Manny plays the way he is capable of in 2008 and the Sox don’t trade him. They obviously pick up his option for 2009 and he makes 20+ million. Let’s say he again produces to the point where he is worth keeping and they pick him up for 2010…..another 20+ million. Now he’s got $40+ million more in his bank account and he’s a free agent AND his reputation is intact (granted his reputation was never PERFECT to begin with but that was all chalked up to Manny being Manny up until 2008. It was borderline lovable). I say he definitely gets an offer from an AL team who wants him to DH most of the time for 3 years at 25 million per year giving him another 75 million for a grand total of $115 million over 5 years. By 2011 the economy will have rebounded and Manny will have gotten a very generous offer, especially considering the fact that he’ll be passing the 600 HR mark during that contract. So will Manny get $115 million over the next 5 years now? That remains to be seen. I don’t think he will. He could have gone down as the greatest Red Sox hitter ever but he let money blind him and now the contract that he had hoped for has severely dropped along with the many 401k plans throughout the nation. Sorry Manny, as with hitting a baseball, timing is everything.