Bob DeChiara-USA Today Sports
The Boston Red Sox have really struggled this year and have been alarmingly inconsistent. Particularly, the offense has been a huge cause of concern. It seems as though many people are taking their frustration out on one player: Hanley Ramirez.
I like Ramirez as a player and always have. I was very excited to see him back in a Red Sox uniform. Offensively, he has had a very inconsistent two months, but lately it looks like he has gotten it going again. He has been pretty bad defensively, but what did people expect? And why are fans putting him down when they’ve had to look at about two years of left field butchery by Jonny Gomes?
Gomes was not much of a better fielder than Ramirez and a much worse hitter. As well, Gomes used to brag about how much of a leader he was. Granted, Ramirez has dogged it in the field, but after meeting with John Farrell, he stole second and hustled all the way home to score a run against the Texas Rangers. That is a player who at least is trying to listen to his manager.
I also think his defense has gotten better. He has been making plays off the wall, and has almost thrown out runners at second. Yes, the numbers show that he is a wretched fielder, but it isn’t like he is giving runs away left and right where it has made a huge difference. I remember when Wade Boggs first came up and he was an absolutely terrible third baseman. However, he worked very hard and eventually he became a Gold Glover.
I am not sure if Ramirez will do that much improving, but he can become passable in left field. Ramirez has been compared to Carl Crawford, but he wants to be in Boston and he wants to be a leader. Let’s cut him some slack.
Carter Roane is a Boston Red Sox writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter@CarterGRoane, “Like”him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.
