Manny Turns Down The Mollies

It looks like the Mollies of Flushing will have to find another Jake Ryan this winter. From the ESPN website....

The Red Sox did throw out the idea of a Manny Ramirez-Carlos Beltran deal in July, but it was on the weekend of the trading deadline after Ramirez had asked to be traded.

The Mets rejected the idea, and GMs Omar Minaya and Theo Epstein tried to construct two-, three-, and four-way deals -- none of which worked. "The ironic thing is that by the end of the weekend, Manny said he would not go to the Mets," says Ramirez's agent Greg Genske of Legacy Sports Group. "I know people have speculated about Pedro [Martinez] and his influence, but Manny does not want to be traded to the Mets."

And, anyway, the Red Sox say they have not offered the superstar outfielder to the Mets -- or anyone -- as of now. Genske plans to meet with Boston owner John Henry next week in Florida, and after that meeting some determination will be made on whether Ramirez will repeat his July request to be traded, or the team will see what it can get on the market, with the knowledge that as a 10-5 player, Ramirez can veto any deal.

If Ramirez does request to be traded, Genske says "his preference would be Anaheim. He also still loves Cleveland, and would go back there." Another possibility would be Arizona, if Boston would take some of the contracts the Diamondbacks are trying to move, including Troy Glaus and Luis Gonzalez. Texas was in play at the deadline.

The problem is that if the Red Sox baseball operations had their way, the only way Ramirez would be traded is if they could restock themselves with a young corner outfielder, a center fielder and pitching. Their feeling is that with so much money floating around the industry and so few quality free agents, Ramirez's contract -- three years remaining at a present-day value of slightly more than $17 million -- will not be that bad come spring training. Also, while Ramirez is unpredictable and sometimes had hustle lapses, he has played 150 or more games three straight seasons, bettered in Red Sox history by only Frank Malzone (7), Carl Yastrzemski (5), Jim Rice and Dwight Evans (4 each).

This wouldn't have been a horrible trade for the Red Sox. You get a switch-hitting gold-glove caliber centerfielder who hits for power and steals bases. Beltran could become a real force in that park. Damon is an offensive force at the top of any lineup. He takes a lot of pitches, hit over .300, steals some bases and has some pop. But he's going to 32 in November. He's only an average defender with a poor arm. The infidels could have gotten a player with a tremendous upside that would have immediately improved their defense up the middle. And he wouldn't have to be the focal point of the offense. Ortiz is. You could bat him front of Big Papi and he could wreak havoc. I don't if he'll put the fear of god into lineups that Manny does now. But he could potentially thrive in that park if he could deal with the press and the tough fans.

For the Mets, I'm not sure it would have been as good a deal. Yeah you get the big bopper you need in the middle of your lineup. But you have all the stuff that comes with it. I wonder how Manny being Manny would go over in Mollyville. You add the fact that Manny will be 34 next year, hitting in one of the better pitching parks in baseball...I'm not sure if that trade makes as much sense for the Mets. I know they've pining for Manny, but there are too many ifs involved whenever he's thrown into a conversation involving a trade.

Manny's not going anywhere. Epstein not doing the deal unless he gets equal value. And how do you get equal value for one of the best hitters of his generation? Everyone is trying to shed salary these days and I don't know if there's a fit out there for Boston. Is Anaheim willing to trade away half their farm system and add $17 million of salary? I don't think so.

It looks like the Mollies are going to have to find another way to add some pop to their lineup.