Manny No Longer Manny

By Matt Bechard

It's over. Whether or not Manny Ramirez is traded today or stays in
Boston, the era of Manny Being Manny is finished. All things must pass,
and so to does the ability of Boston fans to shrug and smile at the
quirkiness of their beloved prodigious slugger.

It was one thing when we knew there would be about a week or two of
Manny Being Demanding, asking to be shipped out of the town where he
became universally worshipped. We knew once the deadline passed we would
get the Manny shoulder shrug, hands raised like "who me?" and he would
continue hitting.

It was one thing when we knew there would be a handful of cases of
Manny Being Lazy, not running out balls, turning doubles into singles,
misplaying balls memorably in left field. We knew after something
clicked in his head we'd see him going first to third, baiting runners
and throwing them out and hustling as best as a grown man in baggy pants
can.

It was one thing when we knew there would be some loopy Manny Being
Whacky moments, running into the Monster to pee during a pitching
change, running onto the field with the flag after gaining citizenship,
and too many zany quotes to count. We knew these were just part of a
true eccentric and we even embraced them like you would an elderly uncle
who still wears clothes from the 1970s and talks to plants.

This was all Manny Ramirez, Manny Being Manny if you will. Let me be
clear, Boston would not have own two World Series without him. In part
it was having a cornerstone player so ambivalent to curses and pressure
that helped the 2004 team overtake the Yankees in historic fashion and
shatter so many decades of frustration. He is a character, he is a
Hall-of-Famer, he is a presence, but most of all he is a hitter. And for
the past eight years in Boston that is what he has done, and he has done
it splendidly. And because of that the fans of Red Sox Nation have
embraced him like the other greats before him, maybe even more so
because of all the eccentricities that came with him and how much he was
disliked and chastised by fans of other teams. The Nation cheered him,
defended him and adored him.

But these last few weeks have been something else. I can never judge
when someone is hurt or not. But I can judge when someone doesn't care.
And maybe Manny is not hustling, taking games off, mouthing off and
generally being a brat in order to force a trade, but it is clear he
doesn't care about the team's performance or the fans in the seats and
at home. This is the first time in his Boston tenure that I truly
believe that Manny is letting the distractions impact his play, and it
isn't pretty to watch.

For the first time in his eight years I think the sentiment among fans
is starting to shift. In past years I think there would have been an
uproar if Manny was traded, even more than when Nomar and Pedro left
town. But those two examples taught fans that this management team is
smart and sometimes it is just time to move on. And when you know that
what you are getting out of a player, even a great player, is only 70%,
then saying goodbye becomes a little easier.

Will a trade happen? Who knows. Will Jason Bay or whoever replace the
offense of Manny? Probably not. But this is more than an A+B=C equation.
A player coming to Boston with something to prove combined with 24 other
players fighting and pulling together to show this deal doesn't make
them worse could be a powerful combo. And if Manny is dealt, to Florida
or wherever, I think there is a good chance he may have the best two
months of his career.

And if he did, well, that would just be more Manny Being Manny.

This is the first piece by Matt Bechard for TDD. He proudly lives, of course, in Red Sox Nation.