Jul 31

Written by: Andy Lee
7/31/2008 2:09 PM

     It seems like every season Boston Red Sox slugger and resident malcontent ups the ante for bizarre behavior.  What has transpired between Manny and the Sawks managment over the last two or so months has made the Brett Favre scenario in Green Bay seem commonplace.  It's no secret that Manny was the darling of the previous regime.  Former GM Dan Duquette signed Manny in 2000, and proceeded to coddle and baby the temperamental star.  John W. Henry became the principal owner of the Red Sox in 2002 and cleaned house.  Henry's front office of Larry Lucchino and whiz kid Theo Epstein aren't as enamored with Man Ram.  They enabled him because he is such an elite MLB hitter, but everyone has their tipping point.  
     Manny was always perceived by the public as a guy that marched to the tune of his own drummer, but privately was dedicated to his hitting, which has been incredible his entire career.  The guy can flat out hit, which is why he is allowed to act like a nut.  However, things got worse than ever in the summer of 2008.  On June 5th, Manny and fan favorite Kevin Youkilis got into a scuffle in the dugout.  In late June, Manny got into a physical altercation with a traveling secretary, when the secretary refused to accommodate Manny's large ticket demands.  When he played hookie from the lineup in late July, the people and press of Boston began to turn on Manny.  Manny's last line of defense, the fans, were getting sick of his act.  
     Personally, I didn't think the Sawks could trade Manny, because there is no one on the market that can replace his bat in the clean-up spot.  Red Sox manager Terry Francona said it best when his told the Boston Media, 'I'd rather have a .300 hitter that everybody hates than a .180 hitter that hands out bouquets.'  The Sawks finally decided to cut their cancer by shipping him to the Dodgers as a 2 month slugger for hire.  In return the Sawks get Pirates slugger, and model citizen Jason Bay.

     In closing, have fun with Manny, Joe and the big blue wrecking crue!!!!

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