From 2001-2008, Manny Ramirez put up offensive numbers for the Boston Red Sox that make him worthy of mention in any conversation about the greatest hitters of all time. He has since been dealt to the Los Angeles Dodgers and has been able to continue his dominant production.
On Friday night, Ramirez will return to Boston for the first time since leaving the Red Sox. The baseball world eagerly awaits the Red Sox fans’ reactions to the quirky player. He didn’t leave the team on the best of terms and some Boston fans are still bitter. At the same time, there is another group of Boston fans who are so grateful for what he did for them that they will be happy to see him. LA manager Joe Torre plans to use Ramirez as a designated hitter in all three games.
The baseball betting lines list the Red Sox as favorites at -150 and the Dodgers at +130. The over/under is 10.5 runs.
The Boston Red Sox (40-28, 23-15 home) play in the AL East along with Tampa Bay and the New York Yankees, arguably the two best teams in the MLB this season. Both Tampa Bay and New York have lost their last two games and Boston has won their last three to gain some distance on the co-division leaders. The Red Sox are just two games out of first place now after a slow start to the season.
The Los Angeles Dodgers (38-28, 15-15 away) are currently tied for first place in the NL East but didn’t fare well in their last interleague series. They were swept by the LA Angels in a three-game series from June 11-13 by a combined score of 20-8.
The pitcher charged with the task of throwing to Ramirez in his return to Fenway park is Felix Doubront (0-0, 0.00 ERA) who will be making is major league debut. He is starting in the place of injured Daisuke Matsuzaka (forearm). He will be pitching against Carlos Monasterios (3-1, 2.98 ERA). Monasterios is coming off of his first loss of the season. He gave up four earned runs in 2 2/3 innings against the Angels on Sunday.
The game will start at 7:10 PM ET and is the first of a three-game series.
