With all that's happened between the Red Sox and Manny Ramirez, I wouldn't have been surprised to find that Manny would have a reluctance to talk about his former team, or that there was a hint of lingering bitterness towards the Red Sox organization. But it's not like that at all. In fact, even though Manny is now decked in Dodger blue, he apparently still carries his Red Sox Nation card in his wallet ... because he's rooting for Boston to get to the Series to face his Dodgers. "I've got my boy David Ortiz and [Mike] Lowell and all those guys," Ramirez said. "I'm pulling for them."Let's see: Hitting for average? Check. Hitting for power? Check. Baserunning? Check. Throwing? Check. Fielding? Yup, Bay can do that too. So what's that sixth tool? Makes a mean Chicken Marsala? Great at Scrabble? Renaissance man? Able to resist the urge to use the bathroom behind the Green Monster during a pitching change? I don't know. Whatever it is, it's a tool that's working well for the Red Sox in the playoffs as they're now on their way to play Tampa Bay in the ALCS while Manny and the Dodgers are prepping for Philly in the NLCS.
Although Ramirez would only say "anything's possible" to a potential World Series matchup between the Dodgers and Red Sox, with the left fielder noting both clubs have to first beat some tough opponents, he joked around about the trade that sent him packing to the West Coast in a three-team deal that landed Boston left fielder Jason Bay. (...)
"That was a good trade," Ramirez said. "I think it was the right move. [Bay] can run, play the outfield. He's got six tools. I've got five."
With all those tools between them, would that make a Dodgers-Red Sox World Series like, Tool Time?
For a few years, 
With the playoff chase coming down to the wire, our MLB editor rounds up the five biggest pennant race stories in 
Our MLB editor provides weekly dispatches from major league games in 
Being a fan of the Pittsburgh Pirates has never been easy. My earliest memories of the team generally involve losing in the NLCS three straight years from 1990-1992 and things have been all downhill from there. With the team trudging towards tying the record for most consecutive losing seasons by an American sports franchise, it probably seems to most outsiders that being a Pirate fan can be boring. That's actually far from the case. The last two weeks have been incredibly strange for Pirate fans. 
What a day for 
The Tampa Bay Rays are one of the best run organizations in baseball. They've accumulated the kind of young talent that most organizations can only dream about. They're also in the thick of a pennant race this season and by not moving today, may have dealt a serious blow to their playoff hopes this year. 
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