Tagged As: baseball, MLB, Manny Ramirez, Scott Boras, Dodgers, Red Sox, free agency

Four months ago Frank McCourt and the Los Angeles Dodgers offered Scott Boras and Manny Ramirez $45 million dollars over two years to stay in sunny L.A. Boras retorted that he would then be taking serious offers. In the coming months magical mystery teams offered more, apparently these teams were from alternate universes because no other team that I have heard of even came to the table with enough to match the offer.

Many, including me, have condemned Scott Boras and Manny Ramirez as greedy bastards, but I think the pair knew they were never going to get the four-year, $100 deal. I think that was a mystical number chosen to do one thing: make sure Manny did not have to report to spring training until March.

It is no secret that the slugger has a supreme dislike of reporting to camp in the miserable month of February, so why not make it look like a contract holdout instead of just pure laziness.

If Manny had signed this offer when it was on the table the first time his lack of a presence in Glendale during the month of February would have been condemned by the media and fans. He would have been called a spoiled Hollywood star or an out-of-touch Man playing a boys game.

By postponing signing, owner Frank McCourt, manager Joe Torre, and the Dodgers fans will be relieved when he takes that first big hack in an exhibition game. They may grumble about the contract negotiation process, but they can rationalize it as an athlete trying to maximize his profit.

If you notice Manny is not playing for the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic either. I do not think he even gave it a second thought. According to all reports Ramirez likes it in Los Angeles and likes playing for Torre (although I cannot wait for the second tell-all book from Torre chronicling the locker room exploits of Ramirez). His dislike for playing for the Boston Red Sox was not exactly a quiet indignation.

An epiphany struck when the news of Manny’s signing broke and I had a difficult time wanting to get back to work. Think about it. Every Sunday millions of Americans daydream about not having to get up to go to work on Mondays. February is his Monday.

We simply have no choice but to go to work. If anything, at least Manny was not calling in sick like we all did after the Super Bowl. No, he took some sort of a high road and did not accept pay until he was prepared to show up for work.

Oh Manny, he was just being so…so…Manny. I guess he’s back and he should be well-rested thanks to that three-day weekend.

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