Published November 20, 2014
Dodgers slugger Manny Ramirez says he's heard nothing amid speculation that he'll be put on the waiver wire at the end of the week.
"No, man, nothing," Ramirez said while snacking on a banana before returning to a conversation in Spanish with teammates Vicente Padilla and Ronnie Belliard. The clubhouse closed moments later for a standard team meeting before Los Angeles began a three-game series with Milwaukee on Tuesday night.
Clubs looking to add the enigmatic hitter would need to put him on their roster by Aug. 31 to make him available for the postseason. Ramirez came into Tuesday's action hitting .312 with eight homers and 39 RBIs in 62 games. He's also made three trips to the disabled list this season.
"I don't think that it's anything different than what goes on in July. All the rumors that fly around in July about trade possibilities," Dodgers manager Joe Torre said. "You know I can't talk about what's going on, but just the attitude, I don't see any concern, first off in his game. ... You really are bred to deal with distractions. It's our job, and so, I don't see it affecting him at this point."
Dodgers owner Frank McCourt was at Miller Park for the unveiling of a statue honoring baseball commissioner Bud Selig, as was White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf, whose team is rumored to have interest in Ramirez. McCourt said the day was about Selig and he wasn't discussing any business.
"This is all about Bud," he said.
A Dodgers spokesman said GM Ned Colletti wasn't on the team's charter to Milwaukee, but is expected to join the team at some point during this series. Several White Sox players were intrigued by bringing in Ramirez to help bolster their offense.
"It's just a rumor at this point. If he shows up tomorrow in his uniform, we'll all welcome him," Paul Konerko said. "Hopefully it'll be good. But until then, it's tough to comment on. We only see as players what you guys see, what's on the TV, if at all."
White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen said if he was asked by GM Ken Williams if he wanted Ramirez, he would say yes. Ramirez was adored in Los Angeles and his sometimes erratic play coined the phrase "Manny being Manny" during his 7½ seasons in Boston.
Ramirez was traded to the Dodgers in 2008 and signed a $45 million, two-year extension in 2009 that included $10 million each season and three payments of $8,333,333 each from 2011-13. But, Mannywood's run is ending with the 38-year-old coming off an injury-plagued season and eligible for free agency in the offseason.
"Manny is a tremendous hitter. I don't think anybody doubts that. Can he help us? I don't know because he hasn't played in the big leagues in a while. He's a presence in the lineup, he makes our ball club better if he's a presence in the lineup," Guillen said. "The same thing happened a couple years ago. We had Ken Griffey, Jr., we handled him very well, players loved him. I don't expect anything different with Manny."
Williams said it's a violation of tampering rules if he spoke specifically about Ramirez, but said that his club can never have too much offense.
"We've got to have the conversation and see what the numbers are on the salary, how we're doing in the standings and the gate. The last 30-some odd days it changes seemingly on a day-to-day basis," he said. "You have to think really long and hard about where you are at a given time and what you're going to do."
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AP freelance writer Patrick Rose in Chicago contributed to this report.
https://www.foxnews.com/sports/dodgers-outfielder-manny-ramirez-quiet-amid-speculation-that-his-days-in-la-are-numbered