In a deadline day blockbuster reminiscent of the Nomar Garciaparra deal in 2004, left fielder Manny Ramirez was dealt to the Los Angeles Dodgers as part of a three-team trade that sent Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Jason Bay to the Red Sox. The Red Sox will also lose Craig Hansen and Brandon Moss as part of the deal.
According to many Major League sources General manager Theo Epstein was working with a mandate from within his own clubhouse. After his team’s dispiriting loss to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim on Wednesday night, Epstein met with a handful of Red Sox veterans, all of whom delivered the same message: Manny had to go. If his antics weren’t directly responsible for the team’s slide — the Sox have lost five of six on the current homestand, their worst stretch of play at Fenway all season, they were certainly serving as a distraction. Worse, the players feared that if Ramirez remained with the Sox for the rest of the season, he couldn’t be counted upon in the middle of a pennant race. In their minds, there were no guarantees that Ramirez wouldn’t engage in further petulant displays that could sidetrack the team’s playoff push.
Nation Notes: The trade of reliever Craig Hansen leaves a hole in the Red Sox bullpen, one that could be filled internally with Triple A starter Michael Bowden, or with a deal during the waiver trading period.
