Saturday, July 30, 2005
Red Sox Hub Trade Rumor Central July 30th 2005
The Red Sox called: They're out of Ramirez'
Red Sox Could Give Up Both ManRam and HanRam To Dump Albatross Contract:
"An official with one of the three teams told ESPN.com that the Mets never walked away from the deal Friday night over money. Rather, it was over their reluctance to let go of Lastings Milledge, one of their top prospects. Saturday, however, the Mets have softened on that stance.
If Milledge is still included in the current proposal, Red Sox prospect Hanley Ramirez gets thrown into the mix. Milledge would potentially go to the Red Sox, and Ramirez would get shipped to Tampa Bay.
Meanwhile, the Toronto Blue Jays have talked to the Red Sox as well and made an 'inquisitive call' about Manny Ramirez, sources said."
IN THEO WE MUST TRUST
If this is accurate, and Hanley is part of the deal, then the Theo and the trio are adament about ridding themselves of Manny's contract. Losing the hyped-up Hanley would be a blow to Red Sox Nation, which has bought into the spin coming from Yawkey Way regarding home grown talent. Maybe the Red Sox aren't as high on HanRam as the fans are, and they have built up his value perfectly; Could be part of the master plan. On the anniversary of the Nomar deal, Theo may be about to pull off yet another bold trade which, on paper, looks to favor the other parties.
Who among us said, exactly one year ago today, "The Sox just swindled Montreal and Chicago!! We just dealt icon Nomah AND a top prospect for some guy I've never seen play named Orlando Cabrera and some backup first baseman hitting .215, with a name that resembles an eyechart...Man, that pimply faced G.M. sure knows what he's doing..."?? At the time, that whole "fatal flaw" speech sounded like a desperate attempt to defend a bad deal. Well, things kind of worked out okay for the "overmatched" 2nd year G.M....
Like today, some fans were tired of the act of a superstar, while others believed in him, or at least in his superior talent. Well, you can't always go by what's on that one dimensional sheet of numbers. Blood and guts trades have a human element in them that simply cannot be captured by Bill James. Defense, for that matter, is also tough to quantify. Since this front office has had the Midas touch to date, we will have to trust them until they suffer a significant miscalculation.
-Red Sox Trade Hub
