Sweeping its way across the baseball landscape, is the recent news of Manny Ramirez's sudden retirement. Hours after receiving notice that he had violated Major League Baseball's Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program, the 12-time All-Star decided it was time to call it quits. Ramirez who served a 50-game suspension in the early part of the 2009 season for violating the same rule while a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers, was issued a 100-game suspension this time around as a second offender. Rather than appealing the suspension that would sideline him for more than half the season, Ramirez informed the league that he would instead retire from the game of baseball. A move that adds to the existing question of whether or not he'll be inducted into Cooperstown.Less than three months ago, Ramirez inked a one-year, $2 Million contract with the Tampa Bay Rays who were seeking a power hitter to help fill the void of the departed Carlos Pena. The signing would also reunite Ramirez with his old pal from the Boston Red Sox, Johnny Damon. The duo spent four years playing together in bean town (2002-2005) and helped put an end to Boston's dreadful 86-year championship drought, also known as the Curse of the Bambino, by winning the World Series in 2004. Both Damon and Ramirez were integral parts in the Red Sox offense which tormented Tampa Bay for so long, helping make Rays general manager Andrew Friedman's decision to sign the two relatively easy.
Ramirez who got off to a slow start this season with only one hit in 17 at-bats, was away from the team when receiving the news of his suspension and had missed his last game due to what Ramirez called a "family matter." According to sources, the banned substance which caused the failed drug test, was detected during Spring Training. Though the abrupt departure from Ramirez came as a surprise to Rays skipper Joe Maddon, the 2008 AL Manager of the Year still expects his team to win the division. "I haven't backed off on that at all," Maddon stated. Easier said than done, winning the AL East will be no easy task for Tampa Bay, who many expect to finish behind Boston and New York in the standings, and even Baltimore to some.Better known for his eyebrow raising remarks and questionable antics which became better known as "Manny being Manny," I doubt we'll see another character like Ramirez for many years to come. Noted as one of the greatest right-handed power hitters the game has ever seen, Manny owns the Major League record for the most post-season home runs with 28, and his 21 career grand slams are second to only Hall of Famer Lou Gehrig who went on to hit 23. Throughout his 18-year career which started with the Cleveland Indians before stints with the Red Sox, Dodgers, White Sox and eventually the Rays, Ramirez hit 555 career homers which places him #14 on the all-time home runs list.
In what's been a relatively quiet offseason that is usually dominated by their vast payroll larger than most, the Yankees make their biggest move yet by signing free agent reliever Rafael Soriano to a 3 year, $35 Million dollar deal. After solidifying himself as one of the more dependable closers for the past two years in Atlanta and most recently Tampa Bay where he led the American League in saves last season with 45, Soriano will serve as a setup man for the future Hall of Famer Mariano Rivera. Soriano, a 31 year old Dominican born converted outfielder, broke onto the big league scene in 2002 with the Seattle Mariners, where a number of injuries got the best of him. After being traded to the Braves before the start of the 2007 season, Soriano served as a part time closer alongside Mike Gonzalez.Although Soriano will see a demotion moving from the closer role to the setup role in 2011, it'll be for a good cause, as Rivera chases the all-time saves record held by the recently retired Trevor Hoffman. Currently at 559 career saves, Mo could possibly surpass Hoffman's save mark of 601 this season to become the all-time saves leader. If Soriano has success in a Yankee uniform and decides to commit to all three years of his contract that includes options to opt out, he could very well succeed his fellow countryman as the Yankees next closer, a helm that's been held by Rivera since 1997. That's if the 41 year old Mo retires of coarse, after the 2012 season when his contract expires. Other than giving Rivera a cushion leading into the ninth inning, the addition of Soriano adds that much more depth to the bullpen, than the archrival Boston Red Sox who many including myself think has the better team offensively, after the additions of Crawford and Gonzalez.
Just how committed to the bullpen are the Yankees? For what it's worth, Brian Cashman and company has invested more money in the Yankees relief corps, than the Rays have invested in their entire roster. With left-handed reliever Pedro Feliciano as the other main addition to the New York bullpen, the only remaining concern lies within the starting rotation. While long time Yankee starter Andy Pettitte's future is still in question, the Bronx Bombers signed former 2005 AL Cy Young winner Bartolo Colon to a Minor League contract with an invitation to Spring Training. Although fans of the pinstripes are hoping Colon can return to the form that saw two appearances in the mid summer classic, it's unlikely he'll have much of an effect given he hasn't pitched since 2009.
Hoping to maintain a strong pitching rotation similar to that of their NL Central counterparts, the Chicago Cubs made headlines as the most recent team to strengthen their pitching staff. After signing former Tampa Bay Ray Carlos Pena to fill the void of Derrek Lee who starred many years at first base for the Cubs, Chicago and Tampa Bay agreed on an eight player trade that will send pitcher Matt Garza to the Windy City, thus reuniting the two former teammates. Helping Tampa Bay outlast the division rival New York Yankees and finish atop the AL East for the second time in three years, Garza finished the 2010 season at 15-10 with an ERA of 3.91.Adding yet another disappointing season to their dreadful World Series drought that reached 102 years after their unsuccessful 2010 campaign, the Cubs finishing the year with an overall record of 75-87 placing them second to last in the division, only ahead of the Pittsburgh Pirates (57-105). With much of their struggles coming within the starting rotation, the addition of Garza addresses their needs of a starting pitcher that can hold his own. Having pitched his entire career in the American League and three of his five years in the powerhouse AL East, chances are Garza will see his ERA drop, entering the DH-less National League. However, pitching in the friendly confines of Wrigley Field is not always a beneficial adjustment given it's a hitters park.
Like many teams, Chicago took the trade approach, rather than taking the free agency route that has been somewhat unattractive this offseason in terms of pitchers available. While Garza departs a crowded Tampa Bay rotation that includes lots of young talent led by All-Star David Price, he joins a Cubs pitching corps that will most likely feature Carlos Zambrano, Ryan Dempster, Carlos Silva, and Tom Gorzelanny. The proud owner of an ALCS MVP Award in '08, Garza hurled one of six no-hitters thrown this past season, and became the first player in Rays franchise history to accomplish the feat. Though he serves as a major upgrade over the less experienced Randy Wells (8-14), it'll be hard to envision the Cubbies as contenders considering the pieces the Reds and Cardinals have, and those the Brewers have recently acquired.Having lost a number of key players to free agency this offseason, it'll be interesting to see how the season pans out as Tampa Bay now parts with yet another key contributor to their recent success.
Sending ripples in this years MLB offseason and the baseball universe, is the ongoing deals that have transpired in the early weeks of Baseball's Winter Meetings. Though the list of Free Agents isn't as appealing as it has been in years past outside of Cliff Lee of coarse and a few others, we've already seen a handful of blockbuster deals being made. While the overspending of the Nationals to get Jayson Werth garnered much attention, fitting that blockbuster category, another big move being made this time by way of the trade, was the dealing of Padres first baseman Adrian Gonzalez to Boston. In exchange, San Diego received a number of Minor League prospects.Upon being introduced in a press-conference in Massachusetts, A-Gone took little to no time to catch the support of Red Sox Nation by describing his desire to win and his readiness to, "Beat the Yanks." Gonzalez, a 3-time All-Star and 2-time Gold Glove Award winner, will service the final year of a four-year deal in 2011, worth $6.3 Million dollars. While a contract extension is in the works, what the change of scenery does for Gonzalez who has developed a reputation for his raw ability to hit the long ball to the opposite field despite hitting in the pitcher friendly Petco Park for the past five seasons, will only help his cause now that he'll be playing in the friendly confines of Fenway. Just two seasons removed from a disappointing offseason in which Red Sox GM Theo Epstein failed to sign Mark Texeira, it seems the acquisition of Gonzalez just might have made up for it, not to mention for a fraction of the price.
As if it wasn't apparent enough that the Red Sox were ready to put last season behind them, a season in which they failed to make it to the Postseason for the first time in four years, they go out and make yet another blockbuster deal. After the addition of the slugging/defensive-wiz Gonzalez, the Red Sox made an aggressive effort to bring in the speedy Carl Crawford. Helping reshape Boston's line-up as one of the more devastating groups from top to bottom, Crawford agreed to a 7-year, $142 Million dollar contract, giving the Red Sox one of the better 1-2 punches that we've seen in years past. The Crawford signing has its own domino effect, as teams like the Angels will have to do without the player they based their entire offseason plan on, and will be forced to resort to plan B.After offering a 6-year, $108 Million dollar contract that ended up not being enough for the biggest marquee position player of this offseason, the Angels will have to shop the market in hopes of landing an All-Star player that can help L.A. regain supremacy in the AL West. One possibility is signing Adrian Beltre who revitalized his career last year with Boston, hitting .321 to go along with 28 home runs and 102 RBI's, all career highs since his MVP-like season in '04 with the Dodgers. As for the aftermath of a Tampa Bay Rays team, 2-years removed from a World Series appearance and the best record in the American League last season, the ball club has seen a number of key players that contributed to their success sign elsewhere.
Those players include reliever Joaquin Benoit, first baseman Carlos Pena, the aforementioned Carl Crawford, and closer Rafael Soriano who remains to be unsigned at this point. Adding insult to injury, shortstop Jason Bartlett was recently traded to San Diego, and rumor has it, starting pitcher Matt Garza is being linked to a possible trade. Hoping to rise from the ashes like the Rays have in recent years, the Baltimore Orioles who have been cellar dwellers in the AL East for the past several years, hope to put an end to that by acquiring All-Star slugging third baseman Mark Reynolds from Arizona. Although the Red Sox and Yankees remain to be the clear cut favorites in the powerhouse division, it'll be interesting to see how the 2011 season pans out.
For the third year in a row, attendance numbers in Major League Baseball have dropped. Much of this problem could be blamed on the economy, but that hasn't prevented fans from supporting their team during a pennant race. That is unless you're a fan of the Tampa Bay Rays. Upon finishing the season atop the AL East division with a 96-66 record and outlasting the New York Yankees by 1-game in the standings, Rays pitcher David Price called out Rays fans for not showing up to the ballpark during a game in which they could have clinched a playoff spot down the stretch. The game's official attendance? A whooping 12,446 fans showed up to the ballpark. All-Star third-baseman Evan Longoria also expressed his opinion, calling it an embarrassment.
However, fans of baseball have seen a similar lack of support from the fans of Tampa Bay's southern neighbor and inter-league rival -- Florida Marlins. Despite winning two World Series tittles in seven years (1997 and 2003), the Marlins fan base has been notorious for not showing up for games, including those in the Postseason. Even during their championship runs, the Marlins have had a hard time selling tickets, which has me wondering, maybe it's a Florida thing? Sure neither the Rays' Tropicana Field or Miami's Sun Life Stadium are no baseball paradise, but fans have flocked to see their team play in cathedrals and stadiums in poorer conditions than those in the Sunshine State.To their credit, the Rays have never really had a big fan base to begin with since being introduced to the league as an expansion team in 1998, but that could simply result to their last place finishes year in and year out. But now that Tampa Bay has some of the best young talent in the league, Rays fans ought to watch their team play now before their key free-agents sign elsewhere after this year...At least that's what's expected. With one of the better records in the league when playing at home, filling up the seats would be huge for the Rays' tittle run. And with Texas in town for the first two games of the American League Division Series, I expect Rays fans to be at the yard in full strength, rooting their team on with their noisy cowbells and other annoying miscellaneous rally tools not named 'vuvuzela'.
