Schilling says ditching Manny was right move

ShareThis

Curt Schilling called into WEEI Radio Wednesday and, with the help of former Red Sox infielder Lou Merloni, shed more light -- none of it flattering -- on Manny Ramirez and the problems that led Boston to trade him to the Dodgers in the final minutes of the trade deadline July 31. "It's the life that we lived every day, and even if we told people the truth, they still wouldn't believe it," Schilling said. "What (the public hears and sees) is 10 to 20 percent of what went on.''Schilling, who played with Ramirez from 2004-07, and Merloni, who was Ramirez' Boston teammate from 2001-03, told a story of a player who, according to Schilling, had a "level of disrespect to teammates and to people (that) was just unfathomable." "The fact of the matter was, you looked at a guy who, at the end of the day, when you look back on the history, never, ever cared about any of us," Schilling said. The trigger to the problems, according to Schilling, was the decision by the Red Sox not to negotiate a contract extension with Ramirez this spring. Management held options on Ramirez' contract for 2009 and 2010, and didn't feel the need to grant an extension. "One of the things you could never talk (bad) about Manny was his work ethic," said Schilling. "Manny worked as hard as anybody I ever played with. And he put a lot of time and effort into it this winter to come into spring training in the best shape he could be, because . . . he said it, in his mind he expected, as soon as they saw the shape he was in and the numbers he started to put up, that they would sign him to an extension and they'd (tear up) the two option years. "The day he realized that they were not going to sign him to an extension was the day he said, 'Uncle. I'm done.'" Schilling discounted the notion that agent Scott Boras, who signed Ramirez in the offseason, prompted Ramirez to try to force his way out of Boston. While he acknowledged that Boras would get "absolutely nothing from Manny Ramirez without a new contract" and said he felt "I thought the day (Ramirez) signed with Boras was his last day in a uniform here," he also said: "Ultimately, you know what? I don't care how immature he is. (Ramirez is) a grown man. He makes his own decisions." As this season progressed, Ramirez' behavior worsened. It manifested itself publicly several times, such as the dugout confrontation with Kevin Youkilis in early June and his shoving to the ground of traveling secretary Jack McCormick later that month. "Lately, after talking to a lot of (current Red Sox players ... I learned) that over the last year, he was impossible to deal with," said Merloni. "And he wasn't worth it anymore."Finally, management approached the rest of the players. "It was never a situation that was brought before the team, ever," said Schilling. "It was always a situation where (manager Terry Francona) was thrown under the bus and fell on the sword for Manny and other players, even though we all knew that those players were acting stupid or being stupid or being disrespectful. And for the first time ever, thankfully, (general manager Theo Epstein and Francona) finally said, 'Okay, listen, let's put it in front of the players because we just don't know what to do.' "And I think the result was what everyone would have voted for three years ago." The result -- Ramirez's trade to the Dodgers -- averted a potential second-half crisis, Schilling said. "I'm totally convinced (Ramirez was going to claim he was injured and) play half the games the rest of the year. And he made it clear he didn't want to play. We've all seen what Manny does when Manny doesn't want to play," Schilling said. Schilling was referring to 2006, when Ramirez announced he had a hamstring injury on Aug. 21 and played 10 games for the rest of the season. David Ortiz was Ramirez's best friend on the team and had frequently intervened with management on Ramirez's behalf, but Schilling said even he understood. "David saw what was going on. David understands the difference between right and wrong, and respect and disrespect. And David would never disrespect a teammate. Even if that teammate disrespected him." Ramirez has been a model citizen -- and a monster hitter -- in Los Angeles with a .400 average in 44 games as a Dodger with 14 home runs and 44 RBI heading into Thursday. When asked whether that angered his former Red Sox teammates, Schilling responded: "Well, I don't know about (mad) . . . I'd say probably disappointed more than anything."(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)