Manny Ramirez Seeking Reinstatement

Major League Baseball quickly put a stop to any Manny Ramirez, Dominican Winter League talk.  Because Ramirez is currently on the league’s inactive list, he would have to request reinstatement before joining any club affiliated with MLB.  Now, Ramirez is ready to begin the process of returning to the Majors, stating that he “was not prepared for retirement”.

Ramirez announced his intentions of joining his former winter ball club, the Aguilas Cibaenas, earlier in the week.  Following his abrupt retirement, Manny had hinted that he would be playing in the Winter League located in his native Dominican Republic.

But, this process was put on hold by the office of the commissioner.  MLB is telling Ramirez that he will have to resolve his second failed test for performance enhancing drugs before he can play.  This positive test resulted in Manny’s 100 game ban and led to his decision of retirement.

This denial to play in the Dominican Winter Leagues didn’t cause Ramirez to simply fall back into retirement.  Instead, Ramirez has informed Scott Boras that he’s interested in returning to MLB, asking the super-agent to “begin the process”.

That process would have to look something like this.  Manny signs with Major League club.  Manny serves 100 game ban.  Manny is taken off inactive list.  Manny gets to keep being Manny.

At this point, the question really has to be, who’s going to want this guy?

Sure he was a great hitter, but not only is he a two-time cheater, but Ramirez also just up and quit on his team this season.  Couple that with all of his Manny being Manny antics from earlier in his career and his recent battery charges.  What you get is a 39 year old who’s not looking all that enticing.

Even with his career numbers, who knows if Ramirez can still hit without the juice?

Ramirez must have some understanding of his current situation, as he added that he would look to play in Japan or “any other place” if he wasn’t signed by a Major League club.

This is all still developing, but one this is for sure.  The Manny saga continues.