Hanley Ramirez Signs With Red Sox

By Guest Writer
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Updated: November 24, 2014

03 October 2014: Los Angeles Dodgers Shortstop Hanley Ramirez (13) [3678] during game 1 of the NLDS between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, CA. (Sportswire via AP Images)

Hanley Ramirez has decided to return to the franchise that first signed him. This comes after agreeing with the Boston Red Sox to a four-year, $88 million deal with a vesting fifth year for an additional $22 million, according to Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports.

Many figured Ramirez would not be returning to the Los Angeles Dodgers after he turned down a $15.3 million qualifying offer earlier this month to become a free agent. The only question was where he would end up.

The move makes sense for both teams. Hanley Ramirez was looking for more money than the Dodgers were willing to give him and the Red Sox were looking to revamp their roster following a last place finish in 2014. The Red Sox also have the flexibility of using Ramirez as a designated hitter should the need arise.

The Dodgers were unwilling to shell out too much money for Ramirez mainly due to his shoddy defensive play as well as having a tendency to be injury prone. In the past four years, Ramirez has only averaged 116 games a season while posting a minus-30 in Defensive Runs Saved.

The departure now leaves a gaping hole to fill in the middle of the infield for the Dodgers. Ramirez may have been a defensive liability but still provided 8.9 WAR these last two seasons for the Dodgers. There are certainly many viable options in Dodger’s farm system such as Corey Seager and Alex Guerrero but neither of those players seem like they will be ready to start in the big leagues by Opening Day.

Although, the Dodgers have reportedly shown interest and are aggressively pursuing a trade with the Chicago White Sox for All-Star shortstop Alexei Ramirez, according to ESPN. While it remains to be seen how far negotiations are, bringing in Ramirez would undoubtedly fill the void up the middle.

Overall, Hanley Ramirez played in 278 games for the Dodgers while posting a 2.99 BA and 172 RBI, according to Baseball-Reference. Ramirez helped revitalize the winning culture in Los Angeles after the new ownership group took over while revitalizing his own career. Ramirez was an essential building block towards the Dodger’s master plan of making it back to the Fall Classic. It was simply time for both sides to go their own direction.

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