Manny Ramirez won't be joining the rest of the Red Sox' position players at training camp today because the outfielder has been granted permission by the team to report on March 1.

01:00 AM EST on Wednesday, February 22, 2006

BY STEVEN KRASNER
Journal Sports Writer

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- The suspense was brought to a screeching halt one day early.

Manny Ramirez will not be joining the rest of his Boston Red Sox position players today, when they are scheduled to report to training camp in advance of tomorrow's first full-squad workout.

Ramirez, who asked to be traded during the offseason, has been granted permission by the club to report March 1, the official players' reporting date as per the Basic Agreement. No one is technically late until after March 1, at which time tardy individuals are subject to team-imposed fines.

"Sometimes in life (things are) not perfect, but we're okay with this resolution," said general manager Theo Epstein. "We will support him in this."

Of course, Manny being Manny, the brief statement handed out by the Sox yesterday, which was followed by a media conference with Epstein and manager Terry Francona, only led to more questions, none of which could be satisfactorily answered.

Will Ramirez actually arrive in camp on March 1? Or, with the slugging left fielder ticketed to play for the Dominican Republic team in the World Baseball Classic, will he just bypass Sox camp and head straight to Orlando, Fla., where his fellow countrymen will be assembling March 2 to train briefly before the tournament begins?

If the Dominican Republic should make the final, it could be March 21 before players would be free to rejoin their respective major-league teams. Should that be the case, would Ramirez come back to the Sox for their final week or so of the exhibition season?

Or will Ramirez boycott the rest of camp in an effort to force Boston to acquiesce to his wishes and trade him somewhere? And, if that doesn't happen, will the mercurial Ramirez opt to just walk away from the roughly $20 million he is owed this year, not to mention the $40 million he is owed for the final two years of his contract?

Will Ramirez be wearing a Red Sox uniform when Boston opens its season April 3 in Texas?

No one knows, not even Manny, possibly.

But what is known is that Francona spoke with Ramirez on Monday, and Epstein has been talking with Ramirez's agent over the last few days, and the result was this terse joint announcement:

"With the permission of the Boston Red Sox, Manny Ramirez will report to spring training in Fort Myers on March 1, 2006. Manny is in Florida completing an extensive training regimen and is prepared to have an exceptional season."

Francona and Epstein refused to discuss whether Ramirez might head straight to Orlando to join the Dominican team, claiming Major League Baseball didn't want management talking about such topics.

Epstein also refused to discuss the status of Ramirez's desire to be traded.

"That remains between Manny and the club," said Epstein.

And what remains of the relationship between Ramirez and the ballclub? It will be just fine, said Francona, given the fact Ramirez yearly contributes around 40 homers and 130 RBI. Special players deserve special treatment, Francona said, in effect.

"He's our player, and we want to get the most out of him," said Francona. "Sometimes as a manager, as a staff, you have to make adjustments with players to get to the goal you want. He's going to show up and drive in 130 runs. I'll bet you on that."

Last year, Ramirez batted only .292, well under his career average of .318. But he also slugged 45 homers, tying his career high, and drove in 144 runs.

And when the Sox really needed him down the stretch, Ramirez's interest was piqued and he delivered, batting .354 with 12 homers and 27 RBI in his last 22 games. He also batted .300 (3-for-10) with two homers and four RBI as Boston's only consistent offensive weapon in Chicago's three-game sweep of the Red Sox in the first round of the playoffs last fall.

Francona said there was no health issue that is leading Ramirez to stay out of camp for now. He also said he didn't talk to Ramirez about his reported trade request.

"After talking to him, there are a lot of circumstances. We feel this is the best way to optimize where we want to go. I could instill my will on everybody in camp, but that won't (necessarily) win more games," said Francona.

"He assured me he would come here ready to play. I assume for us," he said. "This is not coach-speak. I had a very good conversation with Manny. I'm okay with this. He's going to come in here with a smile on his face and he'll be a force."

The Sox can only hope so, because it's not at all likely they know for sure, and they know full well they need a healthy and productive Ramirez in the middle of the order if they plan on making it four straight playoff appearances.

skrasner@projo.com / (401) 277-7340