NLCS Preview

The Los Angeles Dodgers led by Manny Ramirez and Joe Torr... Oh wait thats right there is still a series to be played. The Philadelphia Phillies have become the forgotten team. Has this ever happened before, a team with more wins and home field advantage is never mentioned? The Fightin Phils boast a lineup with two MVP's (only Dodger MVP is on the bench) and a possible third in Chase Utley, yet they are an after thought. No one expects them to win this series. They expect Manny Ramirez and Joe Torre to walts into the World Series.

This is exactly a position the Phillies should be in because of one key thing: NO PRESSURE. The Phillies have not been in the national spotlight since the playoffs started. All the talk is about Los Angeles, this can only help the Phils.

This series is filled with story lines:
1) Joe Torre's quest to go to the World Series while the Yankees are at home.
2) Manny's possible matchup with the Red Sox in Boston... We know Fox is going to do anything to get this to happen (not that we really believe TV exec's can determine the outcome.)
3) Larry Bowa returning to Philly in a Dodger Uni
4) Manny attacking the short porch in left... The all time postseason hr leader has a great chance to add to it.
5) How do the Dodgers handle Ryan Howard and Chase Utley... And can Utley and Howard finally get some postseason hits?
6) Has Brad Lidge forgotten the 2005 playoffs and Albert Pujols homerun and is ready to prove he is a big time closer, just as his big 2008 season proved?

As all playoff series come down to pitching, defense and clutch hitting this one will be no different. If you factor the managers into the equation the nod has to go to Joe Torre over Charley Manuel, unless we are weighing them, then Manuel scales tip in his favor. If Cole Hamels can pitch a great game and help the Phils steal game one the pressure will really be on the Dodgers and the Phillies could be on their way.

Predection: Dodgers in 6. Manny continues his hot streak and Derek Lowe proves he is a big game pitcher.

Manny Guarenteed Ring?

Has Manny Ramirez guarenteed himself a ring? I received this text message yesterday afternoon from my friend Bobby and as crazy and ridiculous as it sounds, Manny might get a ring no matter what (as long as its Boston- LA.) The usualy protocol for a player traded during the season is that they get a ring. Nomar got a ring in '04 even though he was long gone so Manny might have a shot at a ring. I wonder if a losing player in the world series has ever gotten a ring.

A Win for Yankees Despite Blowout

Even if the Yankees did not make one move as the trade deadline they would have been the winners of the trading spree. Their rivals have just taken a big step back, make that a huge step back. They have removed one of the top 5 right handed hitters of all time from the middle of their lineup. This will have ripple effects throughout the whole lineup. There is no way David Ortiz will ever be as effective as he was with Manny hitting behind him. "Mr. Clutch" was only given that name b/c he was pitched to with men on base b/c Manny was lurking behind him. Now Ortiz will get nothing to hit and his production will suffer greatly. It doesnt matter what Jason Bay does as a Red Sox, he isnt the same presence in the lineup. He is not as intimidating as Manny, Yankee fans feared Manny everytime he stepped into the box, now they don't need to even think about him.

This move shows what a problem Manny had become in Boston. After all the Manny being Manny garbage they spewed for years they finally grew tired of his antics. After asking out of the lineup vs Felix Hernandez and Joba Chamberlain and failing to hustle at all vs the Angels, Boston's Front Office had had enough. They figured he would shut it down and dog it rest of year just to get out of Boston. He had always had a week or two each year where he acted this way and they worked it out and moved on. It appears this year it wouldnt work that way. He had become a serious cancer to the team and was bringing them down. The Red Sox not only gave prospects away to get him out of town they are paying the rest of his contract to go 3,000 miles away. The Dodgers, in one of the biggest markets, dont pay a penny for him. He is the opposite of class. Guys like Jorge Posada and Hideki Matsui (I know both Yankees but they fit the example perfectly) truly like to play the game and want to the team to win. They both delayed surgeries that would end year to attempt a come back and help team. You think Manny would do that? God no, he would just collect his paycheck.

The sad thing is, is that Manny Ramirez will get a huge contract out of this. Which is exactly what he wants. His actions shutting down his competitve fire will "reward" him a 100 million contract. But the big winner will be his agent Scott Boras. Boras stood to get no commision on the two 20 million dollar options and now he will get even richer off his commision on Manny's big conract

A couple thoughts:

* Did Hank Steinbrenner offer to fly Manny to LA on his private jet? You know he estatic to see his rivals crumble right in front of him

* Is that the last we have seen of Manny's Dreadlocks?

* Will Manny give Joe Torre and headaches? I think he will play his best and Joe Torre will get the best out of him and get the Dodges to the playoffs.

Manny and his Grill to LA

I cant write about this trade today. Being a Yankee fan, I'm very happy Manny is out of the AL East. To be honest, whoever the Sox got back in this trade would have been a relief over Manny. Jason Bay is a great player but hes not a first ballot Hall of Famer. As I said I have to let this sink in, do some research and come back tomorrow, but to think that the Red Sox wanted to get rid of the face of their franchise over the past 8 yrs so badly is very un-Boston like. Think about it, in order to trade Manny for Bay the Sox had to give up Hansen and Moss AND pay for Manny to play in LA. Once again, to obtain an inferior player, the Red Sox had to give up 2 young guys that they held onto many times throughout trade talks in the past PLUS let LA have him for a free pre-free agency try out. If thats not desperate I dont know what is.


I just dont know what to make of this. Maybe the Sox knew something about Manny that no one else did. However, the only reasonable explanation for this trade at the moment is if Theo is working at the Tijuana whore house that Tony Reagins brought Frank Wren to when he roofied him for the Teixeira deal. Tony Reagins then called up the Dodgers and told Ned Colletti about Epstein working at the whore house in order to blackmail him for Manny. Reagins would have used this information in order to improve his own team, but they already have 5 outfielders plus it would raise suspicions about Reagins' tatics. Face it, this is the best theory we can come up with as to why these two "trades" (muggings should be the real adjective used) happened. It may not be the right answer, but its the best we can use to explain what has happened over the past 3 days.

Original Reaction: Pittsburgh got the best deal. They gave up Bay and got 4 prospects. In the past week they have given up 3 players and gotten 8 in return.

Manny Traded

Not so fast on Jason Bay to the Rays. Several sources are reporting that Manny Ramirez is sent off the Red Sox. SI.com is reporting that the Dodgers have pulled off a three way deal that sends Jason Bay to the Sox and Manny to LA. Not sure who the four prospects are. While the Boston Globe has confirmed Manny has been traded but no word on where.


UPDATE
Buster Olney reports on 1050Espn Radio that the Red Sox feared Manny would go into Operation Shutdown (thanks to Derek Bell for the name) and just give up on season. They saw it last few days with asking out of lineup and then not hustling in the last 4 days. And Jon Heyman reports :Pittsburgh gets Craign Hansen and Brandon Moss, both from Boston, as well as third baseman Andy LaRoche and right-handed pitcher Bryan Morris from the Dodgers."

Is The Manny Being Manny Show on the Move?

Here we go again the rumor mill is being filled with ridiculous rumors of Manny Ramirez being traded. The Yankees would love to see their rival move their best and most dangerous hitter. There would be a champagne celebration and I am sure Brian Cashman would volunteer to drive him to Logan Airport to get him out of town. This situation is partially Manny's fauly and the teams. They have looked the other way everytime he has done something ridiculous and he signed a contract that essentially puts him in his last year of a contract three times.

Before we get to what has led us to this here are a couple of the rumors: Jon Heyman is saying the Dodgers have interest in the Slugging Leftfielder. While the Newark Star Ledger reports the Mets are looking into acquiring him.

If anyone thinks the Red Sox will actually move their star leftfielder, they are nuts. Look at Tom Verducci's article explaining the reasons to keep him. Sure he is a pain and gives them a headache every day. But they knew this when they signed him in the fall of 2000. And they have known this everyday since then. They are willing to look the other way because he will go down as one of the top right handed hitters of all time. Everytime he says he cant play, he pushes the traveling secretary, when he punches teammates, or when he doesnt hustle the Red Sox have no one to blame but themselves as they have looked the other way every other time. This situation has a different feel. Even Peter Gammons has ripped Manny in his articles. And Gammons has never had anything bad to say about Manny until now. The only way he doesnt stick around is if the Sox are willing to mortage the season just to get him and the headaches he causes out of town. However this will be no different as the two sides will resolve the issue. There is no way that you can replace a guy like Manny in the Sox lineup.