OT: Hanley Ramirez is a Lollygagger

Submitted by Seth9 on

This video is a perfect example of a) how you shouldn't play baseball, b) a complete and total lack of effort, and c) how to turn a single into a triple while playing shortstop.

Blue in Yarmouth

May 18th, 2010 at 12:44 PM ^

I was thinking, "That is a bit harsh". After watching the video, I agree with you 100%. If I was the owner of the Marlins I would be seriously questioning my investment after that display. I mean, in all honesty, he is a great player. A display like that would have me wondering though.

david from wyoming

May 18th, 2010 at 12:56 PM ^

This HAS to be a joke post, right? If you have one of the top three players in all of baseball and he JUST got hit in the ankle during an at-bat, and directly after that he gives up on a play ONCE...I think I might just let it slip and not question an investment on the best SS the GM will be be lucky enough to employ.

Good grief. How would you treat someone like Milton Bradley?

Steve Lorenz

May 18th, 2010 at 1:18 PM ^

Devil's advocate here.....I agree he was hit in the ankle, but if you're good enough to be on the field you shouldn't dog it to that level. After all, they are in second place in the division and could definitely contend for the wild card.

A couple other things.....he was for a long time the top prospect in Boston's system and it's been speculated that one of the reasons they moved him was because he had major attitude issues in the minors. He's also been accused of dogging it in the majors already by his own teammates last year, who were accusing him of trying to pad his stats by sitting out late in the season during a slump.

He's also a horrible defensive shortstop and probably won't last there more than one or two more seasons. He's worth the investment because of the fact he's one of the three or four best hitters in baseball, but for a team like Florida who for once broke the bank to secure some talent, I'd be pretty unhappy (if I were them) that they might have done it for the wrong guy.

Edit: I also think there's a difference between a situation like this and a guy like Bradley although I see your point. Bradley's issue is just that he's tempermental....lack of effort was never really a problem with him unless you believe his proneness to injury is superficial.

david from wyoming

May 18th, 2010 at 1:23 PM ^

I'm not going to believe that about Boston without a few good sources. Why? They put up with Manny so long because he is a darn good hitter. Truly talented players are rare. If a player with that much skill has some mental issue, you take the good with the bad ten days out of day. You can have a team full of Sean Casey (good character guy, but not an all star) and I'll take the dudes that can hit.

Also, didn't people say about the same with respect to Cabbrera? He is turning out to be the best hitting in the AL and I don't think to many armchair GM's are still whining about how fat he was at the time of the trade and how his defense isn't good enough.

Any baseball fan would cream their pants if someone as good as Hanley Ramirez is playing for their team. End of story.

Steve Lorenz

May 18th, 2010 at 1:38 PM ^

The Boston stuff was on the radio this morning.....lol I'm not making it up to prove some point. Flipping people off, dogging it on the field. The idea that Boston traded him because of this was partially speculation, but I wouldn't be surprised if it was true, especially given they got Beckett in the deal and he was the catalyst behind both championships they won.

Anyways, I was just trying to paint more of a context than "Oh he got hit in the ankle and then he didn't run fast so it must have been because he got hit in the ankle". The Marlins blogs and Miami writers are pretty much all against him here and I am figuring it's because there's some kind of pattern being established here and maybe it will get to a point where something is done about it.

Blue in Yarmouth

May 18th, 2010 at 2:25 PM ^

I am not sure it has only happened once for starters. Secondly, he got hit in the ankle, it isn't the ned of the world. Considering the fact that he was running pretty good after the fly ball and only stopped to jog after he made an ass of himself by kicking it, I am calling BS on the fact that it was due to an injury.

Trepps

May 18th, 2010 at 5:25 PM ^

his effort was a complete joke and it he's admitted it had nothing to do with being hit earlier in the game not that you even needed such an admission.  Just watch the play- that is not an injury, its plain old fashioned dogging it and any player that will dog a play that openly has a serious attitude problem that isn't likely to just go away.  So yea if I was the owner I'd question my investment.

 

And what exactly is your point on Milton Bradley?  The guy has proven to be one of the biggest malcontent cancers in baseball. 

ShockFX

May 18th, 2010 at 5:32 PM ^

And what exactly is your point on Milton Bradley?  The guy has proven to be one of the biggest malcontent cancers in baseball.

I'm assuming the guy meant to differentiate between asshole and lazy and picked the wrong guy.

david from wyoming

May 18th, 2010 at 6:23 PM ^

Milton Bradley is a fairly talented hitter. Why else would team after team try to make him happy and give him chance after chance? You can also include a guy like Gary Sheffield or parts of Manny Ramirez's career in the category of "my god, this guy was awful on team X, but if we can get his head on straight, he would be a GREAT addition to the team". If you want to question a player based on this one play and number of reports of Hanley not being the best character guy while in the minors...you are missing the point that he is one of the best players currently playing baseball. You deal with Hanley and his dogging one or two plays during the course of the season because he'll win you a heck of a lot more games with his talent then he'll lose with him dogging plays.

Milton Bradley, if he is 100 percent committed to a team and not acting up, is a player any team would want. If he is focused on baseball and his ego as checked at the door, the dude can flat out hit the call. Sadly, he acts up about 4 times a week, so teams end up ditching him as soon as possible or trading him away to another sucker of a team that thinks they can solve the off the field problems. Hanley is an order of magnitude more talented and has an order of magnitude less negative issues.

If Hanley played for the Tigers, or which ever team you are a fan of, you brush things like this aside as long as they happen rarely. Hanley is really f'ing good, and that buys him a lot of leway.

Steve Lorenz

May 18th, 2010 at 6:57 PM ^

Maybe it buys him leway to an extent, but it doesn't give him free reign to just stop trying whenever he feels necessary. Again, this isn't the first time his effort has been called into question in the minors or the majors....he's supposed to be the leader of this team, but he seems to be more of a prima donna than anything, and for somebody who is supposed to be your best player that can be detrimental to the success of the team. 

And again, he's a great hitter but a horrible defender. I understand wanting to ignore defense because of how great a player comes off just because they can hit, but his overall value is definitely not within the top ten players in baseball.

Seth9

May 18th, 2010 at 1:26 PM ^

Then why was he out in the field.

If you go out to play, then it is expected that you will actually show some effort, rather than simply jogging after the ball. People get hit in the foot all the time. It hurts, but when you are on a professional baseball team (or any non-recreational league in any sport, for that matter), then you are supposed to deal with it and run after the ball. If you can't, you tell the manager and stay on the bench.

learmanj

May 18th, 2010 at 1:54 PM ^

Tiger have a history with Florida, but I imagine they want a lot in return, maybe even Jacob Turner.  One benefit of the trade:  Hanley bats over .200 unlike Everett.  One pitfall: Everett's wife is smokin'!!!!!!

ShockFX

May 20th, 2010 at 3:05 AM ^

Cabrera and Willis cost Miller and Maybin, and I'd say Cabrera has been more that worth it. I don't know who Jacob Turner is, but getting a 27 year old SS that bats like this is worth it. Trading prospects for sure things (especially when the sure things are young) is a terrific plan.

Tacopants

May 18th, 2010 at 12:56 PM ^

That's pretty bad, but he did foul a ball off his ankle the inning before.

And it is the Marlins.  Jeffry Loira is probably dreaming up some scheme to expand revenue sharing so he can field an even younger team and make millions with an empty stadium.

david from wyoming

May 18th, 2010 at 1:26 PM ^

Which team wouldn't? As long as the team has the money to pay him that is... The Mets and Phillies and Rockies have good SS. I would assume any other team would at least call about Ramirez when it's time for him to get a pay raise.

Seth9

May 18th, 2010 at 1:34 PM ^

His contract was signed in 2009 for six years and $70 million. It is backloaded, with $11 million due next year, $15 million in 2012, $15.5 million in 2013, and $16 million in 2014. He doesn't have a no trade clause, mainly so the Marlins could dump him before they have to pay the backend of the contract.

Seth9

May 18th, 2010 at 1:31 PM ^

While he's definitely deserving of his extension (6 years, $70 million), yesterday notwithstanding, his contract is backloaded, with $15 million in 2012. Most teams aren't willing to trade for someone with that big a contract, especially when they'll have to give up some very good prospects to get him.

MaizeAndBlueWahoo

May 18th, 2010 at 1:24 PM ^

I don't want to hear about fouling a ball off his ankle.  If you can't play, say so and they will take you out.  Otherwise, play ball.  I didn't see him limping after the ball, I saw him jogging after it.

Dark Blue

May 18th, 2010 at 1:34 PM ^

Maybe the Tigers can go get him. I would be willing to give up a bunch of prospects to get Hanley, and Dave Dombrowski has a very good relationship with the Marlins orginazation.

Tater

May 18th, 2010 at 2:00 PM ^

...but it sure looked like a couple of words started with "F" when he was picking up his bats and leaving.

If Ramierez had been a player on the Tigers in the old days jogged after a ball with runners screaming around the bases, he would have woken up in Toledo.

BraveWolverine730

May 18th, 2010 at 3:13 PM ^

To me it's the interview and statements he made afterward that are far more incriminating.  There are a lot of star players that may dogg it once or twice and get benched to send a message. Bobby Cox did it to Andruw Jones once. You didn't hear Jones in the media saying "it's brutal"  That being said if I were a Tigers or White Sox fan, I would still want my team to call up Florida because players that are that talented are truly rare.  I know it's not my money, but after the contract Howard just got, 15 million seems like a bargain for Ramirez in 3-4 years.