October 19, 2007
Do the Hustle?
Steve Keating in the Boston Globe pretty much ignores Manny's lack of hustle in game five. He plays up his accomplishments in the game:
Tied 1-1 in the third inning, Ramirez looked to blow open the contest when he connected on what appeared to be his fifth home run of the post-season.
But as he trotted to first base the ball dropped on top of the centre field wall and bounced fair holding the Boston slugger to a single, scoring David Ortiz.
Steve Buckley in the Herald mentions it with the right tone:
If you watched all of last night's game, you saw Coco Crisp [stats] fail to drop down a sacrifice bunt when the Sox really could have used one. You saw shortstop Julio Lugo [stats] trespass in front of second baseman Dustin Pedroia [stats] while pursuing a grounder up the middle, turning an out into a single. And, yes, you saw Manny Ramirez do some of his really cool home run stylin', except that he made a fool of himself when the ball inconveniently did not leave the park.
Once again, Manny gets a pass. I can't think of another player, especially a superstar, who is allowed to goof up like that. I remember Gil Hodges walking out to leftfield to remove Cleon Jones from a game after he didn't hustle. That lesson sunk in. I know Francona takes care of these things in the clubhouse, but that hasn't solved the problem. Maybe nothing can.
Manny is a lazy, fat assed bum. He is Barry without the 'tude.
While it's obvious what Ramirez did was stupid -- it didn't have an effect on the game. Even if he had made it to second (or third), Lowell struck out to end the inning on the next at-bat. So he would have stayed at second or third.
So, while he deserves some criticism -- I believe the screw-ups from Crisp and Lugo had a much bigger impact on the game.
Manny is nowhere near the hitter he once was, but he's still somewhat above average. He put up a .881 OPS this year, sixth among the the sixteen qualifying left fielders. Hardly spectacular, but useful.
As a fielder, of course, he's awful. Dead last among qualifying leftfielders in zone rating, and almost dead last in range factor.
But no matter what the numbers show, he's never going to hustle. You just have to put up with the loafing for a bat that's still a little above average and a glove that reeks. If Manny continues his decline phase next year, though, I think the Red Sox will look to unload him. He's nothing special any more, even though he's having a good postseason.
Put the money aside and there isn't a single team in the majors that wouldn't take Manny Ramirez. Those are the facts.
Also, both the accounts you list above were wrong. As someone who has seen Manny "pimp" many a home run, that's not what he was doing in that case. He was jogging down the first base line because he thought he was out. The ball kept carrying. Then he thought Sizemore caught the ball (I did too). Then he saw the base coach signaling for a home run so he figured he'd excuse his not standing on second by also telling everyone he thought it was a homerun.
Not excusable behavior really, but it also didn't go down like Buckley thought it did. Frankly, I'm fine with episodes of Manny being Manny. He's the only guy hitting consistently right now and if they win the series it will be on his back and the right arm of Josh Beckett.
Manny doesn't get reprimanded for that because his production is holding the Red Sox hostage. They fear if they piss him off by benching him, they'll lose his production in the lineup. So in order to maximize their chances at a world series title, they let him do whatever he likes. It's a classic ends-justify-the-means thing.
There's no way in hell they resign him after next year, though I am curious to see where he ends up. Despite what Casey says, Manny's bat is a lot better than "a little above average", and I'm guessing it will continue to be so through next year.
Manny can be highly irritating at times, but he remains a very productive player. This season was disappointing by his lofty standards; if he repeats it next year, the Sox will probably let him go. But if he comes back strong with a .300/40/120 type season, he'll be awfully difficult to replace. There aren't more than a handful of players in MLB who can produce that kind of season, and throw in a .400 OBA for good measure.
As for last night: Yeah, he should have been on second base. But he did more to win that game, than he did to lose it.
I have a feeling that Manny is "special" in the Rube Waddell sense, so none of his teammates get upset with his behavior and they just accept what he brings to the table.
However if this year represents a real decline in his skills he'll be out of the league in a couple of years because no organization is going to put up with someone like him unless his skills are exceptional.
I think Manny was watching if it was a fly out and not a HR. It didn't look like a HR off the bat at all. Same difference I guess but just needed to point that out.
I saw some umpires make fools themselves by calling a home run a single. (FWIW, I watched the game in two different *Yankee* bars and no one in either thought the call was correct.)
And as far as Ramirez being productive: I'd rather have him in the postseason than ARod, and their October stats prove why.
Hudson, are you saying that you thought that ball was a homerun? How strong was the booze in these bars? The ball never even came close to disappearing beyond the wall. It was clearly off the wall, and manny being what manny is, a lazy slacker who is lucky enough to cruise through the game strictly on his superior skills, went into his homerun trot too early, when he should have been on second base.
Hudson, are you saying that you thought that ball was a homerun? How strong was the booze in these bars? The ball never even came close to disappearing beyond the wall. It was clearly off the wall, and manny being what manny is, a lazy slacker who is lucky enough to cruise through the game strictly on his superior skills, went into his homerun trot too early, when he should have been on second base.
Sorry, but by the standards of major-league leftfielders, Manny's bat is no longer something special. An .881 OPS is decent for a leftfielder but hardly stunning. Holliday put up 1.012.
Combined with Manny's horrendous glovework and baserunning, the declining offensive production means he looks overpriced and expendable. If he continues to decline next year - he turns 36 in May - then the Red Sox may try to peddle him for pitching at the trading deadline.