Report: Free agent Hanley Ramirez willing to change positions
Hanley Ramirez is a free agent and suitors around MLB will be throwing millions of dollars in his direction this month.
Ramirez is trying to make himself even more attractive, according to a report by CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman, by telling teams he’s willing to switch positions.
Ramirez is 30 and he ranks sixth on Jeff Passan’s Ultimate Free Agent Tracker. But let’s be honest: Nobody wants Hanley for his defense. He’s a great hitter — tops in the league for slugging percentage among shortstops in 2014 — but he’s not wizard-with-a-glove Andrelton Simmons by any stretch of the imagination.
The Dodgers could very well re-sign Ramirez (they have the cash), but he’s apparently looking forward to playing the open market, tweeting on Thursday that “free agency is a right we earn with hard work.”
According to Heyman’s report, Ramirez is willing to play “wherever there’s need.” And money, presumably. Third base seems like the most likely position shift, but there are other possibilities:
Ramirez’s invitation to play a different position has been taken by interested teams to mean he’d even consider a corner outfield spot or perhaps even first base for desirable teams in winning situations, multiple executives with interest in Ramirez say.
While many shortstops refuse to ever let go of that coveted position, Ramirez, 30, is being realistic about things with this approach. Adam Katz, Ramirez’s longtime agent, declined to comment.
If a team that already has a shortstop is looking for a big bat that can play third base — hypothetically, let’s say the Boston Red Sox, who are said to be pursuing Pablo Sandoval and have Xander Bogaerts at short — that might make Ramirez an attractive option.
Most figure Ramirez can still command more than $100 million, considering he’s a career .300 hitter who averages 25 homers and 87 RBIs per 162 games. If he’s set on getting the biggest payday he can, it makes sense to open his market to teams with needs beyond shortstop.
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Mike Oz is an editor for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @MikeOz
