Wow!
In the past few days, I have read numerous reports about Manny Ramirez being unhappy in Boston and rumours of a three-team trade involving the Pirates and Marlins.
So imagine my surprise to log on to MLB.com after the trading deadline to see Manny had been traded - to the Dodgers!
For a terrible moment I feared the Dodgers would have dealt Matt Kemp, James Loney or Andre Ethier in the deal, but all it cost was Andy LaRoche and Bryan Morris.
And the Red Sox would pay the rest of Manny's contract for the season - much like the Casey Blake deal, it won't add a penny to the payroll.
Plus there's the compensation draft picks the Dodgers would get should Manny sign elsewhere after this season.
I really didn't think Manny would be traded - despite all the outspoken comments and various examples of poor play or bad behaviour, I felt the Red Sox still needed his bat in the lineup, and if they wanted to trade him, they would be scrambling to make a late deal.
Sure, Jason Bay's a good player, but to give up Manny, Brandon Moss and Craig Hansen for him seems way too much and a sign of how desperate they were to deal Ramirez.
This desperation to move Manny could turn out to be a bargain for the Dodgers.
LaRoche never really had the playing time to show what he could do, and I get the feeling his stock had dropped with the emergence of Blake DeWitt.
Of course, the already crowded Dodger outfield just got deeper, with Manny and Kemp locks to start, it looks like Pierre, Ethier and Andruw Jones will be fighting for the other place, with plenty of defensive replacement innings in place of Manny too!
And if it means fewer at bats for Andruw and Mark Sweeney being designated for assignment, it will feel like double the improvement!
Then there's the question of which Manny will show up in LA.
I'm sure Manny will be motivated by the chance to show Boston they were wrong to deal him and to increase his chances of landing a fat free agent deal this winter - though not necessarily in that order!
On the whole, the Dodgers kept their top young players and made their lineup considerably deeper without paying a penny.
That sounds pretty good to me - now let's see what Manny does in his debut against Randy Johnson on Friday night!
Color me surprised too. What a trade deadline, I really didn't think it would amount to anything, let alone anything for my hometown Dodgers, but it's been an exciting couple of days! A few thoughts:
Boston didn't get fleeced as some believe since they're getting a player capable of replacing Manny's production without having to fork up any of their truly prized prospects (Craig Hansen has been a mild disappointment). From an intangibles standpoint, three things that are not quite in Jason Bay's favor: 1) he's never played for anything meaningful at a team level, 2) the inherent pressure of playing in Boston, and 3) he's not as technically sound a hitter as Manny (and in fact, they're gold). It seemed to me that over the past week that the rift between Manny and the Sox organization was irreconcilable on both sides of the coin, which led to a mutual agreement to be fine with the deal either way.
I can't speak for Red Sox fans, but I think the analogy here is what Laker fans think of Shaquille O'Neal when he was traded to Miami. Both Shaq and Manny have larger-than-life personalities, marked by bizarre, even childish antics. Laker fans tend to be thankful that Shaq ended the Lakers' championship drought after more than a decade and in the process, restoring glory to a proud club. However, by the same token, his legacy has been tarnished for the Shaq/Kobe feud and because he believed the Laker organization betrayed him in some way (i.e. not getting more $, the perception of Kobe being the #1 offensive option). Likewise, I think the Red Sox fans will look at Manny as such. Thankful that he was an integral part in breaking the Curse and tacking on another World Series title but will feel that Manny finally wore out his welcome.
The Pirates got a nice return too. Unfortunately, the Dodgers have not handled Andy Laroche in the right way and in fact, he should've been promoted two seasons ago to easen the learning curve. Here's a kid who's had a track record of improving his plate discipline at every stop in the minors but currently looks lost at the plate for the most part. Again, he should've been recalled earlier to make those vital adjustments early in his career. The kid is what, 25, and I think with a good steady course, Andy Laroche could be a good to great player. I don't think he's a superstar (he'll remind me of Scott Rolen at best) but he'll make an impact.
As for the Dodgers, Manny is a nice 2 month rental that really gets better given he's a freebie, which should make the tightwad owner Frank McCourt very happy besides adding yet another Red Sox alumnus out west. I don't see Manny as a flop, as say Andruw because there are no warning signs of a letdown. With a new lease on life, I can see Manny being Manny in a positive sense of his performance. Safe to say, Ned Colletti pulled one out of the bag, recognized more for not giving up a significant chunk of the future (Matt Kemp) than snagging Manny. A World Series run is still a laughable prospect in my opinion but it's at least within the realm of possibility especially in a NL that looks set on being a wide open playoff yet again.
Matt Kemp leads the Dodgers in HR's with 12, and Chavez is HR park too. Heck, I wouldn't be surprised to see Manny hit 12 in September alone.
And the Diamondbacks. They must be shitting them selves right now.
Yes, Dodger Stadium isn't as favorable a pitching park as some think. There's little to no foul territory with the box seat expansion and even if the night weather keeps the ball from lifting, it shouldn't deter Manny especially the short porch in left.
Apparently Manny has chosen uniform #99. The first example of Manny being Manny in LA?!
No, that's Manny being Wayne Gretzky.
Walter Alston's #24 is retired and Manny wanted #34 even if Fernando Valenzuela's number isn't officially retired but thought better of it, as it goes unsaid that Manny wearing Fernando's number just wouldn't seem proper.