Sorry. It’s been a tough day, what with driving James Prince McMillan’s supporters to the polls and all of my volunteer work at the orphanage.
From Michael Silverman in Tuesday morning’s Boston Herald.
The Mets not only have interest in trading for Manny Ramirez, they also believe that the Red Sox outfielder has interest in playing for them.
Recent reports have suggested that Ramirez does not want to play in New York and prefers to play for Anaheim, Arizona or Cleveland. A baseball source, however, said yesterday that the Mets have received indication that reports of Ramirez not wanting to play too close to his hometown may have been a smokescreen aimed at diverting attention from the Mets™ pursuit. Ramirez does have veto rights over any deal, so his consent is key.
The Red Sox and Mets spoke at the trading deadline this past July about both a two- and three-team deal, the third team being the Devil Rays. Now, the Mets are believed to be ready to deal directly with the Sox.
The centerpiece of the deal, coming from the Mets™ side, would be center fielder Mike Cameron and two of the following three prospects: outfielder Lastings Milledge and right-handers Aaron Heilman and Yusmeiro Petit.
Agent Greg Genske told ESPN’s Peter Gammons today that Manny Ramirez still isn’t interested in going to the Mets.
Then where can Manny go? According to the Boston Globe’s Gordon Edes, the Angels might be out, as neither Ramirez nor Garret Anderson wants to be a DH. Ramirez’s other supposed preferred choice, Cleveland, doesn’t seem very interested. If Ramirez would really block a trade to the Mets, then there’s a good chance he’ll be stuck in Boston.