KAOHSIUNG CITY, Taiwan — At 47 years old, Manny Ramirez's Major League Baseball career is likely over.
But the former star outfielder, who hasn't played professionally in the United States since 2014, might still have an opportunity to suit up for a season on the other side of the world.
In an interview with the Taiwan Times, the 12-time all-star who spent his first eight MLB seasons with the Indians said he hopes to land a roster spot in the Taiwan-based Chinese Professional Baseball League. The five-team league started its season on April 12, becoming the first professional league in the world to kick off its 2020 campaign amid the coronavirus pandemic.
"I know if I was given the opportunity to come in an organization as a player-coach, it would do great things for the organization and the league," the Tribe's 1991 first-round draft pick told the paper.
Ramirez is no stranger to the CPBL, having played 49 games for the EDA Rhinos in 2013. He lived up to the hype by hitting .352 with 8 home runs and 43 RBI.
"When I arrived in 2013, attendances nearly quadrupled overnight," he said. "That means, there is love for the game and the fans will come, but the owners must bring what the fans want."
"Man-Ram," of course, is best known for his time as a superstar player in America. Although he could be eccentric at times, he was perhaps the most talented hitter on the Indians' beloved late-'90s ball clubs, and during his time in Cleveland from 1993-2000 batted .313 with 236 home runs and four American League All-Star appearances. His 1999 campaign remains one of the best in team history, as his 165 RBIs were (and remain) the most by any Major Leaguer since Jimmie Foxx in 1938.
Ramirez left for Boston in free agency prior to the 2001 season, and made eight more All-Star teams while helping the Red Sox to two World Series championships. He finished his 18-year career with a .312 average and 555 homers, but his reputation was forever tarnished by multiple positive tests for performance-enhancing drugs. To date, Ramirez has yet to gain more than 28.2% of the vote in the annual Hall of Fame balloting.
Ramirez will turn 48 on May 30.
