Red Sox Designate Hanley Ramirez For Assignment… Wait What?!
Stone
Posted On May 26, 2018
Safe to say I was STUNNED when this news broke. I was also in the midst of grocery shopping as I look down at my phone to see an ESPN update saying “BREAKING: Red Sox designate Hanley Ramirez for assignment”.
I sat down in the freezer section of Stop and Shop, reached for the nearest pint of Ben and Jerrys (Americone Dream to be exact), and went to town. As people walked by, and noticed a grown man crying into a tub of ice cream, they asked what was wrong. When I proceeded to tell them that the Red Sox front office made another questionable move, they just looked at me funny and continued on with their day. This didn’t really fly with management at Stop and Shop; but nothing quite soothes my sports woes like Ben and Jerrys.
Now that I have had time to process this whole move by the Red Sox I understand why they did it, but at the same time I don’t like it…
Why they did it:
Well Hanley was owed about $22 Million Dollars in his contract along with incentives by the end of this year and would have put the Sox in a tough spot. The Red Sox are responsible for more than $15 million remaining on Ramirez’s salary for the rest of this season. So while they are still paying Pablo fat-ass Sandoval, they now have seven days to trade Hanley or release him. With his amazing start to the season in April and his rocky slump in May he is now hitting .254 for the season. Even with his proven leadership and the chemistry he brought to the clubhouse. For some reason the Red Sox decided they didn’t want to chance having to pay the money at the end of this season. With Dustin Pedroia returning to the team today after rehabind with Triple A Pawtucket, some move had to be made. I just am not sure this was the correct one, especially with 3 players having worse seasons than Hanley…
Why I hate it:
Will someone please get Jackie Bradley Jr. and drag his ass to Triple A Pawtucket? Because he SUCKS. He continues to struggle and for some reason he is still in the lineup time and time again. So this leads me to think, who is JBJ blowing in management? Even with Hanleys struggle this month he is still a better hitter than JBJ ever will be. JBJ is batting .171 and strikes out 30% of his at bats. Combined with him and the two catchers Leon and Vasquez, the Sox have a black hole in the lineup at 8 and 9. Why not send Bradley to Triple A to get his shit together (which will never happen by the way) and keep Hanley on the bench to try and get out of a slump? This team has not had any success in the postseason lately, but you know who has? Hanley Ramirez, the guy the Red Sox just cut has a proven track record of hitting in the playoffs. God, just Dave DUMBrowski makes my head spin!
So the next question that comes to my mind with this move is; what happens with Blake Swihart? Remember this guy? The one whose agent asked for a trade out of Boston. The ONLY God Damn thing that could come out of this Hanley decision is that Swihart gets some at bats. But he is still the 3rd string catcher and you have two utility players in Brock Holt and Eduardo Nunez in front of him to play infield. So where does he hit? DH? It’s the ONLY reasonable explanation and his bat is better than Jackie Bradley’s for sure.
If I don’t see Swihart in the lineup as DH soon and JBJ either traded or demoted, I am going to lose my mind because this team needs help even though they hold the best record in the MLB. Their bullpen is atrocious and if you haven’t noticed our starters aren’t very consistent. This team has proven they can be a force in the regular season, but after two abysmal performances in the post season, no Boston fan cares about how well they do in the regular season.
As for Hanley? I believe he won’t be traded, no one wants to take on his contract, but after he’s released you can bet your ass he will be picked up by some team within 24 hours of being released. I hope it’s to someone decent too; especially to a team the Red Sox play that is also in the playoff hunt. I’d love to attend one of those games to give him a huge ovation. I would also love to see the look on managements face if Hanley hits the shit out of us, and I wouldn’t hate him for it. It’s like getting dumped by your girlfriend then going out and sleeping with her friend. Can’t hate the guy for that, if anything you love it because of the revenge factor and respect the hell out of it.
Hanley you will be missed, this pint of Ben and Jerrys is for you my dude!
Thank you #RedSoxNation. It’s been real. Love you always🙏🏽
— Hanley Ramirez ⚾️ (@HanleyRamirez) May 25, 2018
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