Manny Ramirez made waves at the Dodgers’ spring training facility in Arizona on Monday by telling the media that the upcoming season could be his last. Those who believed him were fooled once again.
Seldom does a spring go by without Manny being Manny, and this year is no exception. Ramirez backtracked on the comments he made earlier in the week, and now thinks he might play into his 40s.
“Listen, I want to tell everyone that I felt so good practicing [Monday] that I’m going to play five more years,” Ramirez told the Los Angeles Times.
Manager Joe Torre, who has handled the quirky slugger well during his season-plus with the Dodgers, knows that Ramirez values having fun above everything else.
“I don’t know, it doesn’t surprise me, I think he likes to play a bit too,” Torre told the newspaper. “All those years in Boston, you try not to take yourself too seriously. But he certainly is a fun-loving guy, and he’s certainly in a good frame of mind right now. I don’t see someone who’s thinking about the drudgery of the season right now.”
And Manny is thankful that his feet are healthy enough to keep him on the field at age 37.
“Whether the season is good or bad, you have to give thanks to God,” Ramirez said. “You have to be thankful that you have a job. Think about all of the things that are happening in the world. There are people who say, ‘I don’t have Gucci shoes.’ But I say to them, ‘You have feet. Be thankful, because there are people worse off than you.’”
The $20 million Manny will earn this season certainly doesn’t hurt either.
