Deep 6'd
Dice-K's 6th Feat Puts Sox Under
Monday Night Box: Anaheim of LA 7, Boston 5
Globe: Angels Still Causing Sox Plenty of Fits
Angels Win 6th Straight Over Sox; Dice Faces 6 Batters in 6th... 6 Runs
Dice-K Being Dice-K: What the Sox Have Is a $103.1 Million No. 3 Starter
He's So Marketable: Watered-Down Jacoby Strikes Out While the Bases Were Hot
Garbage Time: Manny Gives It That Old $20 Million Try to Beat the Double Play
"They might be the class of the American League right now." -- 7.28.08, Red Sox manager Terry Francona on the Sox being second-class citizens
McCormick's Revenge: It's a Gammons Smackdown on Manny
"Everyone knows what this latest soap opera is about. It's about Manny being only about Manny -- not the team that will have paid him $168 million when this season's over, not 'teammates' he leaves to answer for him, not winning or any competitive motivation. ...
"Manny is right. The Red Sox are tired of him. They are not going to pick up the option for 2009 and spend one more year as his prisoner. ...
"Manny clearly has decided that he has already fulfilled his obligation to the first eight-year contract, and wants the next $100M right now. In the real world, this is a form of blackmail. In the clubhouse, where Francona and his teammates have allowed him to live by his own rules knowing that his production is Cooperstown material, many are exhausted by his disdain for the game, for winning and for any form of authority.
"What Henry, Werner and Larry Lucchino should do is call a press conference and announce extensions for Francona and Epstein for all they have had to swallow because Manny Ramirez can hit. Then they can watch and see if a 36-year-old DH whose production in 2007 and 2008 has fallen below his 1998-2006 levels will go out and prove he's worth four years and $100M and ride off into the sunset snubbing his nose at the people who paid him $168M.
"A group of Red Sox watched the Yankees take early batting practice Friday, and they complimented the way Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, Bobby Abreu and Johnny Damon show up every day. 'Say what you want about A-Rod,' said one, 'but he plays every day and he plays his behind off.'"
-- Read more from 'Manny all about the money' by Peter Gammons
