Manny Returns to Fenway

After taking 2 out of 3 from the Philadelphia Phillies and handing the Arizona Diamondbacks their 11th, 12th and 13th straight road losses, the Red Sox are preparing themselves to welcome back the one and only Manny Ramirez. His time in Boston was certainly memorable and never boring. It is impossible to overlook his plethora of contributions on the field, but difficult at the same time to look past the negatives. The problem many have, me included, wasn’t his play on the field or his clutch hits, but his antics and lack of hustle on so many occasions.

The positives of Manny’s stay in Boston are almost unbelievable. He spent a ton of time jogging around the bases after a huge homerun in clutch situations (274 homeruns with the Sox) and provided incredible protection for David Ortiz in the batting order. The Ramirez/Ortiz power-hitting duo was arguably the best in baseball for a few years and brought home 2 World Series titles in 2004 and 2007. Ramirez’s defense in the shadow of the monster was surprisingly good and his uncanny ability to catch the ball and throw it into 2nd in one motion resulted in 60 outfield assists. Some feel the positive plays throughout his time in a Red Sox uniform were enough to make up for the ridiculous ones, but I couldn’t disagree more.

In my book, lack of hustle and faking injuries to sit out tough seasons down the stretch are absolutely unforgivable, regardless of the player or situation. Players are getting paid millions upon millions of dollars to step into the batter’s box, run the bases, and depending on the league, play defense. The least we can expect from these players is some hustle. It is insulting to teammates, fans and the game of baseball when a player doesn’t run out a ground ball in the infield as Manny did on many occasions. I would rather have a weaker power lineup of players who hustle and give it 100% every day (Dustin Pedroia-like) than players like Ramirez who dog-it half the time.

Going beyond the lack of hustle, a player that fakes an injury or an excuse to sit out is absolutely ridiculous. If a team is struggling down the stretch or is going to miss the playoffs for whatever reason, have some pride and earn your salary. Players get paid ludicrous salaries to entertain the fans, regardless of how well the team is playing. It is a sport of entertainment and players have to take at least earn their $$ by stepping in-between the lines and putting in some effort. It’s not a lot to ask and is plain insulting when it doesn’t happen.

Regardless of whether you love ‘Manny Being Manny’ or hate him with a passion, he will be booed tonight in his return to Fenway Park. Let me use an analogy to explain the simple reasoning. Imagine dating someone for 7 years who you knew had flaws, but you overlooked them because the positives were so great. Then one day, your partner turns to you and says, ‘F.U. I hate your family and don’t want to be seen with you ever again.’ Essentially, that’s what happened in the Ramirez situation and is the reason he is hated widely across Red Sox Nation. Manny could have hit 60,000 homeruns with the Sox and would still be booed tonight and every night this weekend because of the way he left.

When buying Sox tickets before the season, my wife and I made a point that if we only ended up at one game this year, it needed to be the first visit to Fenway for Manny since he was traded to the Dodgers. We both wanted the opportunity to boo Manny in person and be a part of the Fenway family. Tomorrow night we have that opportunity and just like the other 39,000+ fans in attendance, will let Manny know exactly how we feel about his departure from Boston.