Never in my life
by Phil Gurnee on Aug 4, 2008 2:51 PM PDT
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Printdid I think Manny Ramirez had a chance to be playing for the Dodgers with Jeff Kent still on the team. After having lived through the Milton Bradley and Matt Kemp saga's it seemed the last thing the Dodgers would do is bring in a player who plays the game the " wrong way". I still have a hard time picturing Bowa/Kent/Manny in the same clubhouse but since I've never been in a clubhouse I'm probably clueless how it all works anyway.
While Dodger fans are rejoicing after a weekend of smashball courtesy of the Predator the rumors of his attempts to make him a 2009 free agent should be bothersome to me but aren't. His behavior is strictly between himself and his team but it sure looks like he was not giving much of an effort. Pre Dodger Manny was all pouty and hurt and acted like his whole body was falling apart around him. What with all the 20 million disrespect he was getting it was no wonder his body wasn't able to hold up. But lo and behold, just hours later the Dodger Manny came out wearing superman's cape and he quickly started making a case for his last big payday by saying all the right things and playing as though he was 25. You'd have thought he was a dreadlocked Cal Ripken the way everyone fawned over him. And boy did he produce.
Luckily for the Dodgers his quest for the next big contract could make this season interesting. They finally got someone they trusted to firm up the soft underbelly of the middle of the lineup, and it looks like he's added some life to the club which badly wants to just have some fun.
Having Manny in LF has rekindled the spark in many a Dodger fan. I already watch every inning of every game but for the next couple of weeks I'll have somone to pop my eyes back open after Juan Pierre puts the sleepy spell on my lidds. Every play that he's involved in comes loaded with excitement and questions. How hard will he hit the ball this time? Well he run hard when he does? Can he catch that fly ball 10 feet away from him? Manny is easily the most exciting mid season acquisition the Dodgers have ever had, and I'm going to enjoy the hell out of watching him for the rest of this year because I'm to old to care about his shenanigans since they don't effect me one wit.
Or do they? Time will tell but I do know one thing. No matter what he does over the next few weeks I don't want him getting an encore at Dodger stadium in 2009. Let's enjoy him and then let him walk. Nothing would be uglier then watching Manny playing LF in 2010 unlesss it has been watching Jeff Kent play 2nd base and Andruw Jones CF in 2008.
Speaking of Jeff Kent, don't you think this is driving him crazy? He needs to win a championship but the only way to that championship is on the shoulders of Manny Ramirez? Kent now has an OPS of .553 in the last 28 days.
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Boras being Boras
Considering the precipitous decline that has been happening to many late 90’s-early 00’s power hitters, I can’t imagine anyone would pay over $20MM per for more than two years of Manny after this year (it’s certainly possible, but Mathews, Hunter, and especially Jones are cautionary tales that make me believe GMs will be gunshy). That said, Boras was NOT Manny’s agent for the last contract, meaning that he would not benefit from either option year being picked up, so even if Manny gets less, Boras benefits more. The New York Post article is suspiciously light in its treatment of Boras, as well as its treatment of the Boston media, an institution that has made a career of trashing star athletes. Manny is certainly not innocent of all charges of aloofness, but an athlete demonstrating his displeasure on the field is not a new thing.
As far as the Dodgers are concerned, just having a feared hitter in the lineup changes things. No one needs to become that big threat anymore, and those .800+ OPS numbers by Martin, Loney, and Kemp become outstanding compliments, rather than substandard clean-up numbers. I expect more patience and better production from those guys, and if Manny keeps his motivation up, the offense should be at its best at the right time.
Nothing would me more atrocious?
No way.
Defensively, this would probably be the case, but offensively I doubt it. For Manny to decline to even a 100 OPS+ by 2010 would seem a bit of a stretch; I think it’s reasonable to expect him to put up a .300/.375/.550 line for the next two years. And while his defense is atrocious at best, the dude really does make up for it with his bat, even if he is more valuable if he’s able to be used only as a DH.
What’s truly atroicious is watching Andruw Jones get 228 PAs of 37 OPS+ ball, Angel Berroa getting 118 PAs of 34 OPS+ ball, Mark Sweeney’s 78 PAs of -8 OPS+ ball, Jeff Kent’s entire season, Juan Pierre playing ahead of Andre Ethier or Matt Kemp, refusing to give Andy LaRoche a shot, and that’s just this year. Having a good hit no field left fielder seems like something we can deal with, particularly if the revenue-neutrality of the deal means we can recognize that Jones and Pierre are sunk costs.
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