According to NESN and the San Francisco Chronicle, Oakland could potentially sign Manny Ramirez as their DH soon after the start of spring training. Ramirez, 39, played the first five games of the 2011 season with the Rays before he declared his retirement. This fell coincidentally after he was caught with steroids, which means if he were to come out of retirement he would be suspended for the first 50 games of the season.
Signing Manny is an interesting leap of faith. When he played as an outfielder in Boston, he seemed to be a consistent hitter, but occasionally lacked enthusiasm in left field. This laziness and bad attitude was just the excuse that Manny was being Manny. The A's signing Manny and giving him a second chance in the major leagues will be risky. First of all, he is 39 years old. He could potentially come back for one season just because of that. His statistics, although still close to a .300 batting average, have decreased and he hasn't played for over a year. At this point, who wants him? He can't play the first 50 games, has a past of taking steroids, is a little rusty, has an attitude problem and his age doesn't help. There isn't talk of what his contract may be worth, but assuming the A's are the only ones offering anything, it won't be very large. No one else wants him so he will most likely settle for anything.
Just like in Moneyball, Beane signing Manny is a similar situation to when he signed David Justice. The Yankees didn't want him anymore, he had a nasty attitude, and he was coming to the end of his career. Beane gave him a second chance. If things go Beane's way, are we looking at Manny's comeback?
Source: http://www.nesn.com/2012/02/report-athletics-likely-to-sign-manny-ramirez-before-or-soon-after-start-of-spring-training.html
Deja vu! This obviously isnt the first time the Oakland A's have taken a big risk in signing an underdog, but one has to wonder how the season will work out if this happens. Although age is usually a big factor in a player's value, I would like to see Ramirez and the A's overcome the cononations and stereotypes associated with older players. However, I cant help but wonder how Ramirez's reputation will be affected if he is signed to the A's. Or on the other hand, how the A's will look for signing a player with a reputation for having a temper and doing steroids. It'll be interesting to see how everything plays out.
ReplyDeleteProbably not a comeback, right? Even if he has a good season, how many more could he have.
ReplyDeleteAnd I resent your background image. ;^)
And he signed...
ReplyDeletehttp://www.nesn.com/2012/02/report-manny-ramirez-to-sign-minor-league-deal-with-athletics.html