There literally could be millions of reasons why Manny Ramirez turned down the Dodgers’ one-year, $25 million offer so quickly last night.
Here’s one idea, though.
Why would Ramirez, known for outlandish clubhouse behavior, subject himself to a manager who might leak the details of what goes on for another book — “The Dodger Years?” Some believe Joe Torre violated the baseball trust, what happens in the clubhouse, stays in the clubhouse. Ramirez already ends up in the headlines enough, would he want to risk any more trouble?
If that’s the reason, we won’t know immediately. Because if Ramirez has soured on the Dodgers, that’s the last thing agent Scott Boras would want out there. The market for Ramirez appears to be slim, and the Dodgers were the most interested team, with the Giants the only other team publicly acknowledging interest in the slugger.
It is a possibility that Ramirez and Boras panned the Dodgers’ offer because they are seeking a multi-year deal, but where that’s coming from now is unclear. The Giants have talked about a one-year offer, also.
And if Ramirez were to take his $25 million this year and be a free agent next year when presumably the economy has at least recovered somewhat, it could be a win-win scenario.
The Mets and Yankees continue to deny any interest in signing the Ramirez. But if this is the reason, how could one of them, particularly the Mets, not consider throwing a one-year deal of their own out there?
Sure, there’s a notion the Mets’ owners, the Wilpons, do not want to exceed the luxury-tax payroll, somewhere around $160 million. And who knows how much money they lost in the Bernie Madoff investment scandal, or if Citi actually will abandon their $400 million naming-rights deal?
But, despite the solid 2008 performances of Daniel Murphy and Fernando Tatis, the Mets could use an accomplished left fielder.
Imagine a lineup featuring Jose Reyes, David Wright, Carlos Beltran, Carlos Delgado … and Manny Ramirez.
Ramirez is available, maybe at a discount rate, for a one-year run at an elusive World Series appearance. With no future authors seemingly on the Mets roster, it’s at least worth looking into.
