WHAT IF....the Manny/A-Rod Trade was NOT blocked?

[rra]

In the winter of 2003, after the Boston Red Sox bitterly lost a 7-game contest with the New York Yankees in the ALCS, Sox GM Theo Epstein had plans to cut some fat....in the form of Outfielder Manny Ramirez.

"Manny being Manny" had become a joke in the Boston media, and not a good one. From saying on ESPN that he wanted to play for the Yanks to openly socializing w/ fellow Yankees at a bar to his mysterious "visits" to the Green Monster.....he was a headache, and many believed he wasn't living up to his orgre contract.

Meanwhile, Alex Rodriguez had just won his first AL MVP with the Texas Rangers...who finished DEAD last in the AL West. His (ridiculously) historic 10 year/$250 million contract was a financial drain, and he wasn't the planned cornerstone of an aggressive Rangers dynasty as Texas had hoped.

So you had two good/great players w/ huge contracts that both teams wanted off their books...and of course they came together with a greenlighted trade: A-Rod to Boston, Manny to Texas.

It was set when the MLBPA blocked the deal, because it called for a voluntary pay reduction on A-Rod's part.

We know what happened afterwards. Manny stayed with the Red Sox, and has become an critical element in their 2004 and 2007 World Series championships. While he and "Big Pappy" David Ortiz screw each other yearly in the MVP voting...the best 1-2 punch in baseball?

Of course, the Yankees in that same winter of 2003 made the deal instead with the Rangers. While A-Rod has won 2 AL MVPs in 2005 and 2007, well we know the Yank FanNation's opinion of him....

BUT...What if the trade had NOT been blocked by the baseball player's union? What if A-Rod/Manny had switched teams? What if Boston didn't have Manny in the outfield, Yanks were forced to play A-Rod instead of (over)paying him for his services? What if Manny got stuck down in the crapper that is the Texas Rangers?

[Chris Decker-The Wild Rover]

well...baseball is a TEAM sport. I'm sure the sox would had still been great, now granted probably not champs because, since baseball is a team sport, every person counts, and if you take one element out of the 2004 or 2007 teams, you probably would have had different outcomes.

with that said, i doubt they would have to be regulated to last place or anything. if manny would had left, you can bet dollars to donuts johnny damon probably would had never been traded to the yankees

[Tyfo]

I would have been a lot happier thats for sure. When we traded A-Rod to the Yankees, we got a big load of nothing.

We got Soriano, but everyone knew we would NEVER re-sign him when his deal was up, so we ship him away to Washington for worthless Brad Wilkerson, Termel Sledge(who we immediately shipped away), and a minor league pitching prospect who we've already given up on and he was picked up by Detroit.

The other player we got in the A-Rod deal, is still in AAA because we have no idea where to play him, even though he's big league ready.

At least with Manny, we could have had some fun here in baseball loserville.

[rra]

lifeoftheparty said:

well...baseball is a TEAM sport. I'm sure the sox would had still been great, now granted probably not champs because, since baseball is a team sport, every person counts, and if you take one element out of the 2004 or 2007 teams, you probably would have had different outcomes.

with that said, i doubt they would have to be regulated to last place or anything. if manny would had left, you can bet dollars to donuts johnny damon probably would had never been traded to the yankees

Unless I'm wrong, wasn't Damon picked up by the Yanks as a FA?

[Deleted]

rra said:

lifeoftheparty said:

well...baseball is a TEAM sport. I'm sure the sox would had still been great, now granted probably not champs because, since baseball is a team sport, every person counts, and if you take one element out of the 2004 or 2007 teams, you probably would have had different outcomes.

with that said, i doubt they would have to be regulated to last place or anything. if manny would had left, you can bet dollars to donuts johnny damon probably would had never been traded to the yankees

Unless I'm wrong, wasn't Damon picked up by the Yanks as a FA?

He joined as a FA.

[Chris Decker-The Wild Rover]

rra said:

lifeoftheparty said:

well...baseball is a TEAM sport. I'm sure the sox would had still been great, now granted probably not champs because, since baseball is a team sport, every person counts, and if you take one element out of the 2004 or 2007 teams, you probably would have had different outcomes.

with that said, i doubt they would have to be regulated to last place or anything. if manny would had left, you can bet dollars to donuts johnny damon probably would had never been traded to the yankees

Unless I'm wrong, wasn't Damon picked up by the Yanks as a FA?

yeah but do you think the interest would had been as heavy. plus the sox at that point probably would had tried to keep him as long as possible

[rra]

lifeoftheparty said:

rra said:

Unless I'm wrong, wasn't Damon picked up by the Yanks as a FA?

yeah but do you think the interest would had been as heavy.

Nope.

[comahan]

Ah yes. If that had happened, there was a tentative deal in place between Boston and the White Sox to swap the unhappy Nomar Garciaparra with Magglio Ordonez to fill the Left Field slot that Manny left open.

Give up Manny and Nomar to get A Rod and Mags. Huh.

[Insomniac]

I have no idea what would've happened. But looking back, I'm pretty damn glad it didn't happen.