The seven-player trade made by the Red Sox, which sent Hanley Ramirez to the Florida Marlins on Thanksgiving in 2005, enabled Boston to become the world champions for the second time in four years last season. The Red Sox obtained both Josh Beckett and Mike Lowell two of the players most responsible for another victory parade.
The Marlins aren't complaining about the trade either. The 24-year-old Ramirez has developed into one of the top young players in the game and has helped the cost-conscious Marlins remain in contention in the NL East, even though Florida doesn't seemingly match up with either the New York Mets or Philadelphia Phillies.
"When I was traded I was stunned," said the friendly Ramirez. "The Red Sox signed me when I was playing in the Dominican Republic. I always thought that I would play shortstop for them for a long time.
"After the trade was made my agent called me. He told me that the trade would be good for my career because I would have a chance to play in the major leagues sooner than if I stayed with the Red Sox."
Ramirez played five full seasons in Boston's minor league organization before getting to play in two games with the Red Sox (0-for-2) late in the 2005 season. The Marlins projected Ramirez to be their starting shortstop in 2006, a decision the club's management never had any reason to regret. Ramirez became the National League's Rookie of the Year after batting .292 with 17 home runs, 59 RBI and 51 stolen bases.
"It was a good situation for me," said Ramirez. "The Marlins didn't put a lot of pressure on me. I knew I wasn't going to get benched if I had a bad game."
Last year, Ramirez was even better. He became the club's most valuable player by batting .332 with 29 home runs, 81 RBI and 51 stolen bases. Ramirez is among the league leaders in several offensive categories this season. He's second in runs (96), eighth in hits (145), sixth in stolen bases (29) and 10th in home runs (27). Ramirez is batting .297 and has driven in 56 runs.
In July, Ramirez became an all-star for the first time and started for the National League at Yankee Stadium. He went 2-for-3 in the American League's victory.
"That was a lot of fun. I learned a lot," said Ramirez. "I watched very closely how some of the other guys did things. Albert Pujols and Chipper Jones were two of the players I watched very closely."
Ramirez is currently being paid the paltry sum by major league standards of $439,000 by the Marlins, whose total payroll of $21.8 million is the smallest in the sport. Ramirez's standard of living will change considerably next year. In May, he signed a six-year contract worth $70 million, which is the most lucrative deal in Florida's history.
"(Ramirez) is a franchise player," said Marlins manager Fredi Gonzalez. "He is someone we are going to build around. It's going to be easier for us to sign players after we move into our new stadium (in 2011). We wanted to make sure Hanley is still with us when the new stadium opens."
After signing the contract Ramirez said he purchased a new home in Florida for his family.
The off-season trade which sent Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis to the Detroit Tigers has made Ramirez one of the team's veterans despite his age.
"I like being one the team's leaders," said Ramirez. "We don't have many older players. I like helping the other guys on the team."
What remains uncertain is whether the 6-foot-3, 200-pound Ramirez will remain a shortstop. Pujols said during a press conference before the All-Star Game that he thought Ramirez would eventually become too big to play shortstop and would need to be moved to third base or possibly even first base. Ramirez has made a major-league leading 20 errors this season. He committed a total of 50 miscues in his first two big league seasons.
"I'm a shortstop," said Ramirez. "I've always been a shortstop. That's my position."
It's uncertain for how long Ramirez will remain a shortstop. However, unlike most of the other star players in the franchise's history, he is going to remain a Marlin and not be forced to leave south Florida.
(Art Davidson is a Daily News staff writer. He can be reached at 508-626-4403 or adavidson@cnc.com.)
