Manny Ramirez certainly knows how to make an entrance.
Manny Ramirez: I Won’t Be With Dodgers In 2011
In his first appearance at the Dodgers spring training complex, Ramirez predicted that he would not return to the team next season.
“I won’t be here next year, so I just want to enjoy myself,” Ramirez said Monday morning. “I don’t know [if I’ll play next year]. I just know I’m not going to be here. When the season is over, I will see where I’m at.”
The Dodgers may not have the money to resign Ramirez, who is in the final year of a two-year, $45 million deal he signed with the Dodgers last season. If he doesn’t return to L.A., there likely would be a bevy of American League teams interested in signing Ramirez as a designated hitter.
Ramirez was non-committal about playing in 2011.
“I don’t know about tomorrow, but I know about today,” he said. “.... So when the season is over, I want to see where I’m at. If I play, I play. If they let me play, I play.”
Ramirez has been known to fly off the cuff before, but given his age (he turns 38 in May) and his disappointing performance last season (he missed 50 games for a drug ban and hit .218 after September 1), this statement may have some merit.
“What happened last year, that’s in the past,” Ramirez said. “This year’s a new year, so we’ll see.”
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