For many, late February is the best time on the sporting calendar. The AFL and NRL are moving into full swing, Super Rugby is almost upon us and the summer of cricket is winding down.
For those bitten by the North American sporting bug however this represents the holy time of year when spring training for MLB begins before the commencement of a mammoth 162 game season.
As always there are stories before a pitch has been thrown and the biggest to come out of the states comes thanks to America’s own human headline, Manny Ramirez.
Ramirez, 39, has previously spent time most famously with the Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Rays, before a stint with the Los Angeles Dodgers, where he was banned for a positive drugs test, and chose to retire from the game rather than sitting out the 100 game suspension.
Overnight however, he has signed a minor league deal with the Oakland Athletics believed to be worth $500,000.
Many would know of the Athletics through the hit movie (and long before that one of the greatest sports books of all time) Moneyball, so the question must be asked, does Ramirez, while not an expensive signing, put the theory in danger ?
The answer is no. The Athletics know that there are going to be people who think that signing Ramirez is a desperation deal for a team who have had little success in the last decade, but what it really is is a chance for one of the greats of the game (drug problems aside) a chance to have his swansong on the diamond where it deserves to be.
Furthermore sources in Oakland are reporting that Manny’s ensures that should any mistakes be made by him, he will be cut straight away.
This year could be the perfect finish for a career that has been anything but.
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