By Jason Pan, special IBAF correspondent for WBC
Manny Ramirez, former MLB home run king and RBI leader, will play in the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) for the 2013 season.
Arrival of the two-time World Series winner has stirred up “Manny Mania” in this country, with throngs of fans crowding around the MLB star during his public appearances in the past weeks.
The career .312 slugger in the MLB has signed a one-year contract with the EDA Rhinos, which is reportedly to worth about NT$750,000 (US$25,000) a month.
The EDA Rhinos team, based in southern port city of Kaohsiung, is one of the four ballclubs in the CPBL. The other teams are the Uni-President Lions (Tainan City), the Lamigo Monkeys (Taoyuan City), and the Brother Elephants (Taipei City).
Taiwanese sports media and on-line sites are full of news banter and discussion on the 12-time MLB all-star, about how he will settle in, how he tunes up for spring training, whether he will take the DH role or might also play the outfield, and how he will adjust to Taiwanese baseball.
Heated arguments abound with local fans and analysts trying to predict how many homers the much-feared slugger will hit against Taiwanese pitchers.
One thing almost everyone has agreed on is that “Manny Mania” will pull in the crowds into the ballparks, generate high expectations for the 2013 season, and can have a major impact on reviving the sagging fortunes of CPBL.
Ramirez, who played for Cleveland Indians, Boston Red Sox, and later with LA Dodgers and other teams, had 2,574 hits and 1,831 RBIs through 19 seasons in the US major league.
The 2002 AL batting champ and 2004 World Series MVP (both with Boston Red Sox) had a total of 555 home runs, which ranks him 14th on the all-time list.
With such accomplishments in the MLB, Manny Ramirez is the biggest name to play in CPBL, and the local baseball fans are eagerly looking forward to the start of league’s season opener on March 23.
To catch “Manny Mania” for real, fans will have to wait until March 27, as the team announced the Dominican-American slugger will get his first start at the Rhinos’ first home game in Kaohsiung City on that date.
About playing in CPBL, the former MLB home run king said, “I don’t think about the money and the contract. I just think this is a great opportunity for me and the fans.”
In a public event his past week, Rhinos manager Hsu Sheng-ming officially introduced Ramirez to his team. The 40-year old slugger also reunited with infielder Hu Chin-lung, his teammate at the Los Angeles Dodgers from 2008 to 2010.
Hu elected to return home and play in CPBL, becoming the top draft pick by the EDA Rhinos in the 2012 year-end player draft.
Evidence of “Manny Mania” abounds, as he has attracted focused media attention, and drawn enthusiastic crowds in the team’s training sessions and in his public appearances this past week.
CPBL watchers are all positive on arrival of Manny Ramirez, as he can raise the profile of the league, also help to improve the caliber of competing teams and overall playing levels. In addition, such a renowned international star will certainly boost baseball game attendance and TV viewership.
