According to reports coming out right now Tampa Bay Rays DH Manny Ramirez has retired. Ramirez sat out the Rays’ last game for what was described as personal reasons and then retired today. Rumor has it that Man-Ram tested positive for steroids during spring training and retired rather than serve the mandatory 100 game suspension. As of now all of of this is completely unsubstantiated but, if it’s true, this is a big deal. Manny was being counted on to anchor the Rays’ lineup this season and without him, the team may be in trouble.
If its true that Manny’s career is over, Ramirez finished his career with a .312 average, 555 HRs, and 1831 RBIs. He was a 12 time All-Star, a 9 time Silver Slugger award winner, and a former batting champ. There will be a very very very stong argument made for Manny being a Hall of Famer but either way, he will certainly go down as one of the most talented and prolific right handed hitters of all time.
More on this as we find out about it.
-Max Frankel
