A Walk Down Memory Lane
With the M.L.B. Amateur Draft being today and the recent milestone that was reached, I thought I would reflect on the best hitter and natural talent to put on an Indians’ uniform, in my lifetime. It was June 1991, when the Cleveland Indians selected a kid from George Washington High School in New York City, with the 13th pick, in the first round. His name was Manny Ramirez and at the time he played both third base and outfield. According to Mannyramirez.com, Manny was signed by scout Joe Delucca, and then sent to Burlington to begin his minor league professional career in the summer of 1991. Steve Phillips, ESPN analyst and former New York Mets general manager recently stated on a radio broadcast that New York Mets’ scouts were skeptical of picking Manny in the first round. They had a psychologist administer a test and the psychologist determined that Manny’s results showed that he would crack under the pressures of professional baseball. Phillips went on to state that he disagreed with the scouts and that he would have tried to fight to get Manny if he slipped to them at the 16th pick in 1991. Boy were those scouts and that psychologist WRONG!
Manny made his debut for the Cleveland Indians on September 2nd, 1993. In 1994, Manny’s first full season as an Indian he was named Rookie of the Year and the rest is history. He has long left Cleveland, but he still has a special place in my heart. His raw instincts and ability, coupled with his youthful exuberance has always made me a fan. I hated to see him sign that contract with the Red Sox, but my joy in watching him play has never waned. He has his, “Manny being Manny,” moments that makes you scratch your head, but his talent super-cedes all of that. With the draft being today and Manny reaching the milestone of his 500th home run last week, I wanted to praise the Indians for taking a chance on Manny in 1991 and in doing so, bring good karma to the Indians, in hopes that they can draft a similar talent this year!
Manny’s Career Stats
16 Seasons 7278 At bats 1380 Runs 2274 Hits 485 Doubles
18 triples 502 Homeruns .312 Average .408 On-base percentage
Matt has covered Major League Baseball and the "other two" Pro teams in Cleveland since 1994. He has been on the beat of the Indians in full-time mode since 1996, working for various raido and print networks around the country.
