Who would of thought it would come down to this? Manny Ramirez literally threw himself out of Boston with both his mouth and actions. It started by a slap to Kevin Youkilis’ face, proceeded with a shove to the team secretary, and continued with his big mouth to ESPN DePortes.

Today marks the end of the Man-Ram era in Boston, and to be quite honest, it’s sad. Granted the Red Sox needed to get him out of the organization; it’s just a shame it had to happen like this. Manny Ramirez was one of the most loved Red Sox to date. Ramirez’ eight-year run brought 2 world championships to Boston, a feat that was missing for 86 years.

(Fellow writer Mike Comtois probably said it best when he said losing Ramirez is like losing a girlfriend. It’s true, it’s just hard to picture a Sox team without Ramirez in the lineup. Personally, it’s all I’ve known since 2000 when I was just 14 years old.  But hey, everyone must move on)

It’s tough to tell how Jason Bay will do in Boston. Sure, he’s coming to a much tougher American League, but he is now in the middle of one stellar lineup. Hitting between Youkilis and Ortiz will provide Bay with the much needed protection he was missing in Pittsburgh. Hitting between Ryan Doumit and Doug Meintkiewicz isn’t what we would call “ideal”. Bay had a tough ‘07, but his numbers have turned around this year. Fenway Park is a hitters ballpark certainly to a right-handed batter like Bay.

So what’s next? Now that the Red Sox clubhouse has been rid of the cancer, maybe the post All-Star break struggles are about to turn around. We sure hope so.

One thing is for certain, Manny Ramirez will never be forgotten. No if’s, and’s, or but’s about it, most of us enjoyed watching him roam left field, high-five fans, become a cut-off man in center field, and smash many home runs over the Monster. We thank you Manny, and hope Joe Torre and the Dodgers can deal with you.

Jerry Remy was in the midst of his weekly morning interview with Dennis & Callahan on WEEI when he confirmed Manny’s intentions of getting out of Boston. When asked about whether or not the clubhouse would be disappointed if Manny departed or the players and management would give a huge sigh of relief, he had this to say:

“Well, you know, we’ve been down this road so many times. And, you know, this is probably going to be one of the final times, I mean, it’s over. Whether it’s over tomorrow, or whether it’s over at the end of the season. I think it’s going to be a mixed bag. You’re going to have players come out and say, “What a great job he did for us, he helped us win two championships”. On the other hand you’re going to have some guys quietly say, “Thank you very much”, because they were not happy when he didn’t play in those two games. One against Seattle and the other against the Yankees. And basically, enough is enough.”

Remy continued about how he and Ramirez talked in the clubhouse:

“You know, I walked by him briefly and he said, “Have I been traded yet?” I said, “You still got two more days.” I said, “You don’t really want to go?” He says, “Yes I do, I want to find peace.”

Either way, it seems Manny’s days in Boston are nearing end. Nuisance or not, Ramirez did help bring two championships to Boston. You can’t take that away from him.

Tune in below to check out D&C’s Full Interview with Remy earlier this morning.

(h/t to D&C and WEEI.com for the audio interview)

Sox & Dawgs - Ian over at Sox & Dawgs talks about Dice-K’s meltdown and provides the NESN video montage of Big Papi & Manny with a little help from Bruce Springsteen.

Hugging Harold Reynolds - Is Michael Phelps the Best the US has to offer? According to HHR, what’s to make of this half merman/half Budnick(Salute Your Shorts) look-a-like?

Open Sports - Open Sports presents the MLB’s All-Time ugly team….and boy…..some of these mugs are in dire need of a fine-tuned makeover.

Sox Addict- Mike over at SoxAddict.org summarizes The Great Manny Debacle of ‘08. Trade him? Let him walk? Receive draft picks? Mike goes over the options.

Red Sox Monster - Yowzers! Looks like the obsession over Heidi Watney is soaring.

Fire Brand of the AL - Manny to Dodgers? I’d gladly trade him for Matt Kemp.

Title Town - Boston

It’s funny. You remember very few details about your own life. But as sports fans, you’ll always remember exactly where you were when your team won a championship.

I’ve had the pleasure of viewing a nice video from Mack Media Productions called “Title Town”.  It’s also a very nice refresher from some level-headed people, unlike the fellas over at ESPN who call Valdosta, Georgia as Titletown. We all know who the real title town is. Starting with the Cinderella Patriots in ‘01, reversing the curse with our Lansdowne 9 in ‘04, and culminating with our boys in Green taking down the Lakers in June, Boston IS Title Town.

As Boston sports fans, we’ve hit the jackpot in this decade.  We are on one helluva ride, and we won’t even realize it until its over. Thanks to the guys at Mack Media Productions, I took a couple minutes to smile and remember “damn, we’re lucky”.  Do the people in Valdosta say that?  Probably not.

Thanks again fellas.  Check out this great video….

I want to preface this blog by saying I think John Farrell is a great pitching coach, and could easily be a successful manager, but…..

Sunday night, Sox are winning big.  Lester seems to be struggling through the 5th inning, especially after giving up a soft chopper down the third base line to Derek Jeter.  Bases now loaded with Bobby Abreau coming up.  But wait, John Farrell steps out of the dugout to talk to his left hander.  It must have been a great pep talk, because Lester went ahead and walked in a run with 5 pitches.  What could he have possibly said to mess up his control that bad?  Hold that thought…

Monday night, Sox are down one, looking to escape a big inning.  The Halos have men on first and third, I believe, and Dice-K is starting to get rocked.  The righty Justin Masterson is warming in the pen, but instead of Tito making his way out to replace the Dice Man, its Farrell again.  Pacing towards the mound to ’settle his pitcher down’… Three pitches later, Torii Hunter cracks a back breaking three run bomb that landed somewhere near the Boulevard in Lowell.

2 nights.  2 failed mound visits.  Luckily, Lester was able to calm himself down and get out of the inning, securing the win for the Lansdowne 9.  Dice K, on the other hand, was not so lucky.  He picked up the loss after getting pulled in favor of Masterson once Torii Hunter did his trademark bat flip and crossed home.

Here’s my question to you… What could Farrell possibly be saying to make matters worse on the mound for an already struggling pitcher?!!  Please leave your comments below….

Straight out of Compton, California, Troy O’Leary donned a Red Sox jersey from 1995-2001, switching between left and right field. We’re not sure why O’Leary’s name is juggled within the random Sox outfielders of the 90’s, but he put up some quality numbers while patrolling the outfield corners for the BoSox.

From ‘96-’99, O’Leary managed to compile 80+ RBI’s each season while belting more than 20+ home runs two of those seasons. His best year came in ‘99 when he hit .280 with 28 HR’s and 103 RBI’s. It’s hard to imagine a player who hit .297 with 17 HR’s and close to 70 RBI’s in the first half of the 1999 season not make the All Star team. O’Leary never appeared in an All Star game, which may be a reason why some fans might forget the name.

One of my personal favorite Red Sox moments was during the ‘96 season. The Red Sox were hosting a series with the Oakland Athletics. It was the bottom of the ninth in a 1-1 game before O’Leary smashed a walk-off home run in style that hit off the Pesky Pole and sent the A’s packing.

“They might as well call Fenway Park’s right-field foul pole “O’Leary’s pole now,” said former Red Sox pitcher Roger Clemens, “but I don’t know if Freddie Fungo {Johnny Pesky} will give it up that easily.”

I remember the moment vividly, although I was still just 10 years old. I was sitting in grandstand section 28 and remember the Fenway faithful go absolutely nuts for O’Leary.

O’Leary became a free agent during the fall of 2001. He was picked up by the former Devil Rays but released a month later. Following his release, he made brief stints with the Montreal Expos and Chicago Cubs before retiring in 2003.

O’Leary finished his career with a .274 BA, 127 HR’s, and 591 RBI’s.

He’s a man that some people could forget, but I certainly don’t…

Throughout the 2008 season, Sox pitching prospect Michael Bowden has received much acclaim for what he’s put together. In Double A Portland, Bowden has compiled a 9-4 record with a 2.33 ERA. He has shown stellar command of his pitches and has only allowed 5 HR in 104 innings of work.

As of yesterday, Bowden will head to Pawtucket, RI, as the Red Sox organization promoted the 21-year-old Illinois native to Triple A. Now gracing a PawSox jersey, Bowden’s road to Fenway Park is quickly approaching.

A 2005 first round pick, Michael Bowden, quirky delivery and all, is confident he has what it takes to help contribute to the Red Sox one day. Here’s a snippet of a Baseball America interview with Bowden before the 2007 season.

BA: Sandy Koufax was as dominant as anyone in history, but had a relatively short career. Ferguson Jenkins had a much longer career, but while he was very good, was nowhere near as brilliant. Which of their careers would you rather have?

MB: That’s a tough question. I always want to be the best, so I kind of want to say Koufax. I want to play for a long time, though, so I’d take a career like Jenkins’s. I want to be winning games in the big leagues for as many years as possible.

SoxProspects.com goes on to say, “Bowden is said to be a workaholic and just loves to pitch - another player who just lives and dies for baseball. Very athletic.”

Take a look at Bowden’s more in-depth profile by clicking here.

Hopefully, with a little more development and experience, Bowden will be on the hill for the Red Sox sometime in the near future.

Well, looks like we’ll be without Julio for a month and a half.  I bet everyone in Red Sox Nation is really bummed to see him out.  They’re really bummed to miss his errant throws in clutch situations, his late game mishaps booting balls all around Yankee Stadium, and his oh-so-famous crotch grabs in the batter’s box and on base (when he got on base). So the real question now is: Do we just stick with Jed for the remainder of the season? 

Here’s the thing about Julio.  He came here as a potential leadoff guy, failed at that.  He came with the thought of providing a little pop, failed at that.  He came as a stolen base threat; he’s proven he’s a decent base stealer. 

But where he really can hurt the team is in the field.  Of the 30 starting Shortstops, Mr. Lugo has the worst fielding percentage by far (.945).  With a team that could really excel defensively, with a fast outfield, Youk and Lowell at the corners, and Tek behind the dish, Lugo has been a huge hole in the defense.  Lugo’s .270+ average does not make up for his lack of focus in the field…

Paging Mr. Lowrie!  The 2007 Baseball America AA All-Star, Jed comes up hitting .268 in Pawtucket this year, but has come up with a string of impressive games with the big club when he’s had the shot.  Last year, he provided some decent pop as well in Portland.  Waiting to break out, Jed has also proved himself in the field, even though he’s bounced from SS to third and second.

In this writer’s opinion, the team needs stability at Short.  Speed is not a necessity with Ellsbury at the top.  We need a guy that can sacrifice someone over, play hit and run, and have good chemistry with Dusty at 2nd turning two.  My vote is to keep Jed in the lineup, even when Julio comes back.

Tomorrow night the phenom, Clay “don’t call me Taylor” Buchholz takes the mound for the Red Sox, over a month after being sent down to AAA to work on his command. In his brief stay in Pawtucket, Buchholz showed flashes of brilliance, dominating every team that stepped up to the dish. It wasn’t until his last start for the PawSox that he was roughed up a little bit. Buchholz surrendered 5 earned runs in 5 innings against Lehigh Valley, the last place team in the International North division.

Overall, however, Buchholz brings a 1.63 ERA and 1.16 WHIP to go with 38 K’s in 38 innings to Fenway since being sent down. Buchholz will try to solidify his spot in the lineup against the Baltimore Orioles — the same Baltimore Orioles team that was no-hit by one Mr. Buchholz.

Buchholz has pitched twice in opposition of the Orioles and they have yet to cross the plate with a run in 12 innings.

If Clay can mix up his pitches and continue his strong command from the minors, he should be a fixture in the big leagues. Either way, expect big things from the rookie phenom.

————-

It’s a shame the Sox have an off day Thursday, one day after pounding the Minnesota Twins with a hitting onslaught. Let’s hope the hitting ways continue tomorrow night, even without David Ortiz, who, by the way, says he is feeling no pain while or after taking batting practice.

It looks like things might be finally starting to come together, this Orioles team seem ripe for the picking –  maybe the Sox can make it 2 sweeps in a row, inching closer to the top spot in the AL East before the All Star break.

We’ll have to watch and see…

Just float that curveball, Clay, float it…much like Henry Rowengartner throwing that eephus to Heddo of the New York Mets — “I haven’t seen the floater pitch since Stuffy McGee!” - Brickman

boy was he angry..

He should of been disciplined, but the Sox really can’t afford to have him out of the lineup, therefore, I bet we’ll see a $1k fine heading Ramirez’ way……chump change.