Manny Ramirez wasn’t tanking it with Red Sox

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So, Tim McCarver says Manny Ramirez was despicable in Boston, that he basically gave games away. Well, first of all, I’m surprised McCarver stopped talking long enough to even notice what someone else is doing, and second, I think the last time someone used despicable in a sentence, it was Daffy Duck talking about Bugs Bunny.

But did Ramirez really tank games? That’s pretty easy to check. Let’s take a look at his numbers in July, the month before he was traded. After all, he must have been jaking it then, or the Red Sox wouldn’t have traded him:

MANNY RAMIREZ IN JULY:

AB: 75

R: 18

H: 26

HR: 4

RBIs: 16

AVG: .347

OB%: .473

SLG%: .587

And his numbers the week before he was traded? A .321 average, a .406 OB% and a .500 slugging percentage.

Hopefully, he’ll continue tanking like that with the Dodgers. And for Tim McCarver to call someone despicable is funny, since he spent years catching Bob Gibson, who took great glee in throwing at batters on purpose. Of course, in baseball, throwing at a guy is a sign of manhood, but not running out every routine grounder to second is considered weak.

-- Houston Mitchell