INSIDE BASEBALL
Manny of the Year
A second-half power surge has turned the Indians' Manny Ramirez
into an MVP candidate
by Mark Bechtel and Jeff Pearlman
Posted: Wed September 22, 1998
After Indians rightfielder Manny Ramirez drove in his 100th run
of the year, against Tampa Bay on Aug. 17, he was asked how many
more RBIs he hoped to have over the remainder of the season.
"That's it," he replied. "I'm happy with 100." That Ramirez would
admit to harboring such underwhelming aspirations hardly
surprised anyone. During his five seasons in Cleveland, the
26-year-old Ramirez has picked up a reputation for flighty,
lackadaisical play. Losing track of the count has been one of his
repeated blunders: He has headed for first base on ball three and
hung around in the batter's box on ball four. Last year he
successfully swiped second against the Tigers, only to be tagged
out while retreating to first under the mistaken impression that
the batter had fouled off the pitch.
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Ramirez ripped
number 45 against the Royals for his eighth homer in five games.
(Tony Tomsic)
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Fears that Ramirez would become complacent after reaching the
century mark in RBIs proved to be incorrect, though. Over the
past four weeks through Sunday, he was on a tear, homering 16
times and driving in 40 runs in 27 games, while sparking talk
that his season's numbers—.301 average, 45 homers, 141
RBIs—merited MVP consideration. "I've never seen anyone as hot,"
says Indians manager Mike Hargrove.
"Manny has been more aggressive lately," says hitting instructor
Charlie Manuel. "He's been hitting the ball exactly where it's
pitched. He's been real smooth."
Two homers last Saturday off the Royals' Jose Rosado were perfect
examples of that smoothness. The first came on a breaking ball,
down and in, that Ramirez pulled to left. The second came on a
changeup, low and away, that he drove over the right centerfield
fence at the 375-foot mark. With that he became only the second
player in major league history to crack eight dingers over a
five-game span. (Frank Howard of the Washington Senators did it
twice in 1968.)
What's more, Ramirez's late-season surge came at a time when
Cleveland's most consistent run producer, Jim Thome, was on the
disabled list and the Indians were limping toward their fourth
straight American League Central championship. The Indians are
encouraged that Ramirez is finally growing up. "Without a doubt
he's getting more mature," says Manuel. "Not just from an
offensive standpoint, but also in his baserunning and defense."
The 6-foot, 205-pound Ramirez is also maturing physically. "He's
definitely gotten stronger," says the 54-year-old Manuel, who
stands 6'4" and weighs 210. "Now when we wrestle, he can beat
me."
Issue date: September 28, 1998
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