The hours leading up to the Major League Baseball trading deadline were hectic.
First, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, owners of the best record in all of baseball, added a big bat to their lineup by landing Mark Teixeira.
Next, the New York Yankees filled their void behind the plate by nabbing experienced catcher Ivan Rodriguez.
Then the Chicago White Sox acquired veteran Ken Griffey Jr.
In past seasons, any one of those blockbuster trades involving prominent players would have been the most raved about. But the last-minute trade made in this year’s deadline is by far the most important for the team involved.
In the most critical trade, the Los Angeles Dodgers received slugger Manny Ramirez from the Boston Red Sox by shipping a pair of prospects to Pittsburgh, who sent outfielder Jason Bay to Boston to complete the three-team trade.
And just like that, Manny Mania ““ resembling last summer’s David Beckham extravaganza ““ begins.
Ramirez, whose uniform No. 99 is hidden under dreads that resemble those of Lil Wayne, almost never made it to Hollywood. Before dealing him to the Dodgers, the Red Sox nearly dealt Ramirez to the Florida Marlins.
The Red Sox first made Ramirez available following a month-long clash that put him and his former team at odds with one another. On the field, Ramirez displayed his discontent by failing to hustle after putting the ball in play. Off the field, a disgruntled Ramirez used the media to publicly criticize the front-office, claiming that the team did not deserve his services and requesting to be traded elsewhere.
That is exactly what Boston did and, as it turns out, one team’s trash is another team’s treasure.
Before the trade, the Dodgers desperately needed an offensive weapon in the middle of the order.
Ramirez, one of the game’s premier run-producers for over a decade, provides that. Although the Dodgers’ pitching staff ““ leading the National League with a 3.64 team ERA ““ has been solid all year, the offense has slowed the team to a .500 record.
Now, the offense has the viable threat general manager Ned Colletti has been looking for.
In the first two games donning Dodger blue, Ramirez had four hits in eight at-bats, including a two-run blast that shook the left-field pavilion at Dodger Stadium on Saturday night.
To put the home run into perspective, it gave Ramirez half as many home runs as Andruw Jones has hit in 68 games this season. As of Sunday, Ramirez matched Jones’ numbers when he had a single, double and home run.
Jones, who had never hit fewer than 26 home runs in any of his previous 10 seasons with the Atlanta Braves, has only two home runs in 199 at-bats this season.
Along with Jones’ disappointing season (to put it lightly), Colletti’s unsuccessful offseason signings of Jason Schmidt and Juan Pierre are also under scrutiny.
With the ball club in the heat of a division race at the deadline last year, Colletti acquired mediocre reliever Scott Proctor and signed hefty lefty David Wells. Proctor is currently on the disabled list and Wells is out of baseball.
By obtaining Ramirez, Colletti might have saved his job, at least for the time being.
Aside from battling their NL West foes, the Dodgers have also had to compete with the Angels for city supremacy.
The team across town ““ or the neighboring county ““ was also busy during the deadline, acquiring Teixeira, a power-hitter also known to be a slick-fielder.
But the Ramirez deal overshadows Teixeira’s, because the Angels already possess the best record in the Majors. Some may say that Teixeira gives the Angels a better chance to contend, but Anaheim already leads their division by double digits and has had success against the tough AL competition.
Quite frankly, the Angels would be in the same position if they would have kept rising-star Casey Kotchman, who they traded to the Braves to get Teixeira.
With Ramirez hitting cleanup behind star catcher Russell Martin, the Dodgers are undoubtedly a better team than they were a week ago. A further boost may be on the way with the additions of Nomar Garciaparra, Brad Penny and Takashi Saito, who have been injured.
The Ramirez trade does not make the Dodgers the favorite to win it all, but it does give the Chavez Ravine faithful some hope for a chase at the pennant.
And that, folks, is what the trading deadline is all about.