Will Manny be with the Dodgers in 09?
Manny Ramirez has turned down the Dodgers’ latest offer but owner Frank McCourt is still interested in keeping Manny on the team. At the same time, he’s setting expectations to reality, predicting that the Dodgers main return to the playoffs without him.
Manny’s done wonders for the Dodgers. Besides taking them further than they’ve been in a while, he put asses in the seats. If you’ve been to any recent pre-Manny/Torre Dodgers games you noticed that Dodger Stadium has all but become a retirement home daytrip destination.
As a lifelong Red Sox fan, I understand what a pain in the ass Manny can be. Constant contract negotiations, lazy days, and all around “Manny being Manny.” For a team in need of a spark as badly as the Dodgers there might be a bit more patience with his shenanigans. It’s never been a secret around Boston that Manny’s goal was to head home to play for a New York team. We hoped it’d at least be for the Mets rather than the Evil Empire Yankees, but you have to go where the money is.. and while the Yankees spend money like a storm it doesn’t seem to have helped much.
McCourt has also told the LA Times that he’s frustrated with Ramirez’s agent Scott Boras and mentioned that he did not foresee Manny getting a long-term contract. With Manny Ramirez and his agent BOTH being so high maintenance, is it really worth it? Glorious home runs, asses in seats, and well an extended season are great and all, but at what cost? Would outfielder Adam Dunn and second baseman Orlando Hudson give the Dodgers they need to keep the momentum without Manny? Who else is really interested in Manny (the home-runs-at-any-cost SF Giants have publicly expressed interest.)
McCourt ended his conversation with the LA Times by saying:
“One of the reasons I would love to bring Manny back is that I think it would provide that kind of hope and joy and that kind of fun for our fans,” McCourt said. “If we could ever duplicate what happened in the last 2 1/2 months, I think that would be fantastic, for not only the Dodgers but for our community.
“I hope Manny eventually sees it the same way.”
Any Dodgers fans out there that require a Manny-ized Dodgers in order to root for your team? This past season was pretty drama-less, but for Manny a lot of the drama always happens during the break and usually up to a week into spring training. Do you really need Manny?
