Hanley Ramirez continues to be a subject of trade rumors this offseason with new president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski running the show in Boston. Will the Red Sox be able to move the costly veteran before 2016?
It's no secret the Red Sox want to trade Ramirez, who signed a four-year, $88 million deal last offseason. He was a failed experiment in left field, dealt with injuries for a lot of 2015, failed to produce at the plate in terms of what was expected of him, and he's now possibly transitioning to first base, which doesn't seem like the best of ideas.
As a result, it appears as if Dombrowski is intensifying his efforts to get rid of Ramirez in whatever manner possible.
"There's now talk in the front office that Dave Dombrowski is trying to move Ramirez in a deal," writes Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. "The Mariners, Orioles, and Angels seem to be the targets, and all three make sense. There are huge hurdles to cross, however. One is money. With a little more than $68 million remaining on Ramirez's deal, the Red Sox would need to eat at least half. The other hurdle is position. All three teams would have use for him as a DH."
Absorbing $34 million of Ramirez's salary would be beneficial for both the Red Sox and their potential trade partner. This would give Boston an extra $34 million to spend in free agency, and Ramirez at less than $12 million per season could be advantageous for those interested. Seattle and Baltimore, who aren't keen on adding significantly to their payroll, probably wouldn't mind adding a 20-home run bat for that price.
The Orioles could perhaps be the most intriguing destination for Ramirez since the team could lose a number of valuable free agents this offseason, most notably Chris Davis. Ramirez didn't have a great season in 2015, but he still clubbed 19 home runs in 105 games and he's proven in the past he's capable of being among the best in the MLB when healthy.
"The Orioles haven't engaged in serious internal discussions regarding Ramirez," writes Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com. "However, it's worth keeping an eye on the situation.
"We can't ignore how executive vice president Dan Duquette signed Ramirez as an international free agent in 2002 while serving as Red Sox general manager. Duquette seemingly would be open to hearing out Dombrowski."
With the Winter Meetings approaching next week, this is certainly a credible scenario, especially if another MLB team swoops in and signs Davis.
Ramirez wouldn't replace Davis, but his power would put another threat in the Orioles' lineup and give them something else to build off of as the offseason progresses.
