Reviewing the “Manny Being Manny” show
Usually, the show “Manny Being Manny” is a sitcom. But for the past week, it’s been nothing but drama. Episode one: On July 17, the Boston Herald quoted Manny saying that he wanted his contract situation resolved, and that he was unhappy with the front office. Episode two: On July 18, Bob Lobel reported that “the front office … perceived” Manny’s three-pitch strikeout against Mariano Rivera as “a big [expletive] to the Red Sox after the fine,” a penalty he received for shoving the team’s traveling secretary.
The timing of Lobel’s revelations was certainly curious, since the K in question was nearly two weeks earlier, on July 6, and the shoving incident June 28. In fact, it’s enough to make this wag wonder if we’re watching a re-run from the days of Nomar and Pedro’s departures.
On the other hand, it’s not the first episode in which Manny has been accused of faking. There was the Enrique Wilson Affair (2003); The Mystery of the Monthlong Absence (2006); and the triology, Absent at the All-Star Game (2000, 2003, and 2006). However, it may be the first time that anyone has accused him of intentionally screwing up in the batter’s box.
So with the team struggling to regain first place, we’ve suddenly got ourselves a debate: Should the Red Sox extend the Manny Show, picking up his $20 million option for 2009? The current opinion seems to be “no;” that he isn’t driving in enough runs, that he’s overpaid, and last but not least, that his antics are just too annoying.
Let’s take each of these accusations in turn. While Manny is ranked 21st in the majors in RBI, which doesn’t sound very good, he’s also just 36th in RBI opportunities. How is he supposed to drive in runs if there’s no one on base? Better metrics show the man still rakes: entering last night, he was third among all outfielders in Value Over Replacement Player, sixth in on-base plus slugging. And his impact on the lineup has been felt in other ways: this season, J.D. Drew in front of Ramirez is much more productive than J.D. Drew in his usual six-hole.
Is he overpaid? Let’s comparison shop. There are seven outfielders with contracts who pay them an average of $17 million a year or more: Manny, Andruw Jones, Torii Hunter, Ichiro, Vernon Wells, Carlos Beltran, and Alfonso Soriano. None of them is having a better year than Ramirez. (Jones, in fact, is on track to have the worst offensive year in baseball history.) The top 2009 free agents are going to cost a pretty penny themselves, and none are an upgrade over Manny.
As for the antics, well, the Manny Show has had an eight-year run in Boston. Sometimes the gags fall flat. But like most sitcoms, it’s pretty predictable. By now, we should know what to expect when we watch.
Sarah Green is a freelance writer. She can be reached at sgreen@gmail.com.
