Ramirez had been playing for the Triple-A Sacramento River Cats after serving a suspension for drug use, but when it became clear that the A's were not going to promote Ramirez in the near future, the 40-year-old slugger requested to be released, in the hopes of catching on with another team.
Whether this is the end for Ramirez — who hasn't appeared in a major league game since April 6, 2011 — remains to be seen, but there's no doubt that Ramirez has left an impact on baseball during his 20-year career.
Ramirez made 12 All-Star appearances and played in four World Series, winning with the Red Sox in 2004 — when he was named Series MVP — and 2007. Ramirez led the American League in home runs, RBIs and batting average once each, and his 555 home runs and 1,831 RBIs rank 14th and 18th, respectively, on MLB's all-time lists.
Of course, no discussion of Manny's career would be complete without mentioning his eccentric personality. Ramirez' exploits included taking a bathroom break in the Green Monster, wearing sunglasses with a built-in MP3 player and drawing the ire of Red Sox fans due to his lackadaisical approach to playing the outfield.
In later years, Ramirez has been plagued by a pair of positive drug tests that have limited his playing time since 2009.
If this is indeed the end for Ramirez, it's been quite a ride.
Click here to take a look at the life and times of Manny Ramirez>>
Photo courtesy of Facebook/Manny Ramirez
