Analyzing the Manny trade
Posted on July 31, 2008
Filed Under 2008 Season, Baseball Miscellaneous |
The Intro:
Manny Ramirez is out and Jason Bay is in. Casualties of war included RHP Craig Hansen and OF Brandon Moss. This trade, like any other, has it’s ups and it’s downs.
The Ups:
1. In Jason Bay, Boston has received a 29 year-old outfielder that can hit 30 HR and drive in 100+ runs every season.
2. They also got rid of Manny Ramirez and all of the distractions that swarmed around him. Most players admit there is no such thing as a cancer but it was no surprise that Manny’s presence was a problem with the team. When guys are struggling, they don’t need to field questions about Manny and his mouth or lack of hustle. I love Manny and I’m grateful for what he did but it was time for him to get the hell out of dodge.
3. This trade freed up close to 15 million dollars from the payroll. This will be money that can be used next year in getting middle relief or perhaps making an effort at signing someone like Brian Fuentes or K-Rod.
The Downs:
1. A two-time All-Star (Bay) can’t replace a first ballot Hall of Famer (Ramirez) in the outfield. Manny’s bat is a lot older than it once was but he can still put up a .900+ OPS year in and year out.
2. The Red Sox also lost Craig Hansen. Hansen, although his performance this year was shaky, has absolutely explosive stuff on the mound. Unfortunately he is out of options after this year so the Red Sox didn’t have the time they needed to “fix him.”
3. Brandon Moss is also an excellent player but he was stuck in an outfield logjam that included Bay/Ellsbury/Drew. There was no way he would ever be able to get the playing time he needed so he was included to get the deal done.
4. I’ll miss some of Manny’s antics. Especially the way he slid into a base (link).
5. The Red Sox had to pay the remaining portion of Manny’s salary, a cool 7 million dollars.
The Conclusion:
The Red Sox paid (in players AND in money) to get Manny out of town. This deal doesn’t leave the team any better but it sure may leave them a lot happier.
Bye Manny. I’ll miss you.
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3 Responses to “Analyzing the Manny trade”
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another upside is it keeps the Rays from getting Jason Bay, they would have had him if the Sox kept Manny and there was no telling if he (manny) would have shut down before the season was over. Sad to see him go but it was the right move.
Yeah, that’s very true too. The Rays were supposedly wicked close to landing Bay and we swooped in and grabbed him.
If I hear ‘addition by subtraction’ one more freaking time…