LOS ANGELES (AP) -Manny Ramirez hit the ball hard, but right at Colorado third baseman Ian Stewart. So it appeared to be nothing more than a routine out.
But instead of jogging to first, as the whole world saw Ramirez do a few times with the Boston Red Sox last month, he ran hard all the way. And it paid off when Stewart mishandled the grounder before throwing too late to first.
Then, to the shock of just about everyone in Dodger Stadium, Ramirez stole just his second base since 2005, getting such a big jump catcher Chris Iannetta didn’t bother to make a throw.
“We got a little giggle out of it,” manager Joe Torre would say later.
A single by James Loney drove Ramirez in with the tying run, and the Dodgers were on their way to another victory.
Manny being Manny seems to have taken on an entirely different meaning.
“He’s a regular guy when it comes to being a teammate,” Torre said. “The thing I’ve gotten to learn about him is his work ethic is pretty impressive. He knows he’s a pretty special player. He’s gone about it impressively.”
Many in Boston would beg to differ. They believe Ramirez quit on the Red Sox to force a trade, and not long after it happened, general manager Theo Epstein said: “We had a meeting with 25 players who felt like a team. We haven’t felt like that for a week.”
Torre, in his first year with the Dodgers, said he could relate to what Ramirez recently went through.
“Evidently the Boston thing was something he wanted to change,” he said. “I had a great 12 years in New York (managing the Yankees). It was time to go somewhere else.”
Almost from the minute Ramirez arrived in Los Angeles on Aug. 1 – a day after the one of the most stunning trade-deadline deals ever made – he’s been at the center of a lovefest, revered by the fans and praised by his new teammates.
The 36-year-old Ramirez, whose 516 homers rank 20th on baseball’s career list, has said he loves his new surroundings but won’t say he’ll be a Dodger next season. As a free agent, he could very well command a huge payday with, say, the Yankees or Mets. It just so happens he spent much of his youth in New York.
“The guys have received me with open arms, it’s been great,” Ramirez said of his new teammates. “It feels like I’m on vacation; I’m here for another month or two. After this, I don’t know what’s going to happen. I’m living day by day.”
Ramirez made an immediate impact on the field with his new team, going 8-for-13 with five RBIs in his first three games in Los Angeles that just happened to be against the Arizona Diamondbacks, the team the Dodgers are battling for the NL West lead.
That was just the beginning. Entering a series in Philadelphia this weekend, Ramirez was 28-for-69 (.406) with six homers, 12 runs scored and 21 RBIs in 19 games. And the Dodgers were just two games behind the first-place Diamondbacks.
Ramirez has surprised his new teammates with his defense as well.
“He gets real jumps in the outfield,” Loney said. “Nobody really knew. They probably figured it wasn’t the same playing in Boston (with the Green Monster in left field). “You’ve got to play on the road, too.”
As if all that weren’t enough, Ramirez has breathed life into what was a somewhat quiet clubhouse. Asked if Ramirez had changed the dynamics, fellow outfielder Matt Kemp responded with an incredulous look.
“Where have you been, man?” he said.
Ramirez, one of the first players to arrive before Thursday’s game against the Rockies, spent a few minutes sitting in a chair in front of Kemp’s locker, laughing and joking with Kemp, Juan Pierre and Pablo Ozuna, before Kemp shooed him away, saying: “You’ve got your own locker.”
Ramirez moved on, greeting locker-mate Jason Johnson before stopping to exchange a few words with Russell Martin and then Nomar Garciaparra, a former teammate with the Red Sox.
“The clubhouse is a little looser. We’re just having fun. That’s the way it’s supposed to be,” Kemp said.
Johnson agreed.
“It’s been humorous, put it that way,” he said. “I’d say he’s changed how everybody reacts around here. He’s really loose. Any clubhouse he comes into, he’s going to make it looser. Whatever it was, whether it was him or us, we’re playing real well right now.”
Public reaction has reminded longtime observers of “Fernando-Mania” in 1981, when Fernando Valenzuela captivated fans by winning the first eight starts of his big league career.
“Never in my career has this happened to me,” Ramirez said.
Attendance at Dodger Stadium increased immediately. The Dodgers sold 30,000 tickets in the first 24 hours after the trade – the highest volume of regular-season tickets in that time period in the club’s history.
Since the first weekend, the Dodgers have sold over 400 wigs modeled after Ramirez’s well-known dreadlocks, more than 100 Ramirez No. 99 jerseys and over 6,000 Ramirez T-shirts.
“I think the attention’s going to follow him, the curiosity, what he’s going to bring to us,” Torre said. “Manny’s presence, and how it’s changed the personality (of the team), has helped the guys understand there’s a lot of baseball left.
“I’m not sure he wants to be the voice. I think he’s come in here and basically been himself. I think he’s surprised all the people have jumped on his coattails. I think we were developing a personality we liked before Manny arrived. I think Manny was able to combine the fun part with the work aspect.”
Ramirez said he doesn’t look back at his days with the Red Sox. But his eyes brightened when asked about good pal David Ortiz.
“Me and David, we text, mess around,” Ramirez said with a smile. “We had a blast.”
And now, he’s having a blast on the other coast.
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