While Jason Bay was receiving a standing ovation at Fenway merely for not being Manny Ramirez — Boston’s former left fielder was telling the assembled Los Angeles media that becoming a Dodger was the culmination of a lifelong dream. The only thing missing was Tommy Lasorda showing up with his hair in braids.
Bay would score both runs in a 2-1, 12 inning defeat of Oakland. Former Boston reliever Alan Embree — a 38 year old living testament to the importance of teaching lefthanded children how to pitch — struck out David Ortiz and induced Alex Cora to ground out in the final frame, but allowed a triple to center from Bay. After issuing an intentional pass to J.D. Drew, Bay came in after Jed Lowrie slapped a ball past Bobby Crosby. It was Lowrie’s 2nd RBI of the night, so if you’re wondering who is supposed to drive in the runs without Ramirez on board, there’s your answer.
Manny left $40 million on the table in Boston?
Ben
He didn’t leave anything on the table – I believe the last 2 years were club options and there was ZERO chance Boston was going to pick them up. I think Boras believes Manny can get one last 5 year deal for pretty good money.
Those two options were affordable (by today’s superstar standards) and if Manny had acted like a normal human being the final two months that first option was a no-brainer. It’s a typical Boras move. I wouldn’t be surprised if all of this stuff was planned and staged by the super agent. Don’t forget that the contract with the Sox was negotiated by Manny’s old agent and if the Sox had triggered the option years then Boras would not have gotten any commission. Boras can now rest easy that he will be getting a cut of the next contract. He absolutely did leave money on the table….for the promise of more money.