February 17 2011 Last updated at 03:29 PM ET
It seems that being left hanging for most of the offseason before signing for a relatively paltry $2 million with the Rays has left the legendarily lethargic Manny Ramirez with a little extra gas in his tank.Ramirez spoke to Roger Mooney of the Tampa Tribune at the Rays' spring training complex on Thursday and outlined the way he's feeling in advance of the 2011 season. He's lost weight in hopes of avoiding the injuries that limited him last season, he doesn't care where he hits in the order and, most of all, he's looking to prove to all his doubters that he can still play the game.
"I want to go and get that feel back that I still got it," Ramirez said. "I just got a chip on my shoulder that I want to be here, I want to get my stuff right and show people I can play."
That all sounds good, especially when you dial back the memory to find what a fully motivated Ramirez looks like on a baseball diamond. Just think about the way he played when he first arrived in Los Angeles in 2008 and the mind reels at what Manny could mean to the Rays lineup. Even taking into account the degradations of time, a fully motivated and healthy Ramirez is a good bet to be one of the better bargains in all of baseball.
Now, since we're talking about Manny, we have to consider how little anything he says in February means come July. He's going to have to keep on giving 100 percent all season and he's going to have to really be comfortable playing on a team where he isn't the center of attention. That chip on his shoulder will likely go away with a little time and the old difficulties of grinding through a season will return.
The addition of Ramirez and Johnny Damon to go with top prospects like Jeremy Hellickson and Desmond Jennings is certainly an intriguing approach. Its ultimate success will come down to whether Ramirez is able to be more than a sideshow this summer.
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