I know some people may be annoyed by the “carelessness” displayed by Manny Ramirez. We already established that one in a past post, but how can you hate a guy that does what is shown above? In this video, you can see Manny make an unbelievable catch, jump up on the wall, high five a fan, and then laser beam the ball all the way to first to make a double play. I am speechless. Mr. Ramirez, one word of advice, if you will: Keep on being Manny!
“And his name is DAN UGGLA!”
If you’ve ever gotten a close look at Dan Uggla, you can definitely tell that he ate his greens as a child! Even Alfredo Amezaga nick named the Florida Marlins slugger as “Popeye” while reading the line up about a week and a half ago in spanish. While we Floridians know what Dan Uggla is capable of, and while many of you have been able to see what this 5′11- 200lb homerun fiend has been able to produce, there are still many in this world that have not a clue who Dan Uggla is.
Dan Uggla truly is the modern day Popeye. With a small frame and enormous forearms, our hometown hero’s uncanny resemblance goes far beyond the physical. Like Popeye, Uggla is sometimes strange, comical, and may sometimes appear to have supernatural powers. (How can such a small man hit a ball so hard?!) Popeye is depicted as having superhuman strength and it is obvious when Uggla hits the ball that he too, shares that very characteristic. Must be the spinach!
Aside from almost being confused for Popeye’s twin brother, who is the man behind the iron swing? Who is Dan Uggla? Dan Uggla was born “Dan Cooley Uggla” (one hell of a name!) on March 11, 1980 in Louisville, Kentucky. Uggla graduated from high school in 1998 and attended the University of Memphis immediately after. After his junior season of playing ball on campus, he was named an All American by Baseball America, Baseball Weekly, and Collegiate Baseball. Uggla was then drafted by the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2001 and spent nearly 5 years in the Diamondback organization prior to being reeled in by the fish as a Rule 5 pick. Dan Uggla has been a part of the Florida Marlins roster since 2005 and played his first game with the fish in the 2006 season.
During his first season with the Florida Marlins, Uggla had a .282 batting average, 27 home runs, and 90 RBI. In 2007, he had more home runs, but a lower BA and a lower RBI. Now in 2008, Uggla is off to an amazing start. He went through a rough patch early on, but Uggla is now batting .299 with 29 RBI and 12 HR, one of which was his first career grand slam! I look forward to watching Uggla continue to succeed and raise his numbers through out the year! AND HIS NAME IS DAN UGGLA– NOT TO BE CONFUSED WITH POPEYE! 
*FUN FACT*: Dan Uggla’s last name means ‘owl’ in Swedish
You’d think that with the Cincy Reds stadium being so incredibly small, the Florida Marlins would have no problem hitting HR’s and putting the Reds to shame. For some reason, however, whenever the Marlins have come to town (since April 2006) they have bombed terribly in this stadium, allowing the Reds to crush the hearts of Florida Marlins fans. Including last nights game, the Marlins have lost 7 games in a row against the Cincy Reds in this very stadium. So what is it? Their players are too good? That would have been the conclusion that I would have come to if I didn’t know any better. The Cincy Reds are in last place right now.
There must be a curse of some sort. For this years 4 game series, it all started on Monday, when we we tied 4-4, and a cursed voice whispered into Fredi Gonzalez’s ear and told him to throw in Tankersley and see what would happen. Boy, did we see what happened! The second game Cantu blew it by fire balling one over to first… right over Helms head. In last night’s game, Cantu and Hermida helped Nolasco get his loss. Not to mention, Hanley Ramirez trying to steal 3rd and getting thrown out; and Treanor being told by the 3rd base coach to go get to home plate. He is a catcher! He isn’t going to be very fast! While the Marlins eventually tied the game with the Reds in the 8th when Ross corked a 3 run homer, we eventually fell short. Marlins were flying high, until the 10th inning when the Reds claimed their final run, and with it their third win against the Marlins.
You really have to wonder, after watching these games, what mystical powers does this stadium have that leaves our Florida Marlins players crippled? We had a 7-game winning streak prior to visiting this stadium, and now we are on a 3 game losing streak. What is the reason? Is there a logical explination?
For now, all we Marlins fans can do is sit here bewildered and hope that tonight’s game will be the one to break the curse. We can defeat the Great American Ball Park, and we will.
I think it is safe to say that Manny Ramirez is truly one of a kind. Lovable to most and frustrating to some, it is undeniable that Manny Ramirez is an incredibly talented ball player. Sure he has his moments of stupidity, but people love Manny for the same reason people loved Yogi Berra. They both have enigmatic persona’s. And while often confused for a simpleton( HELL, the guy snuck into the “Green Monster” to go to the bathroom! He barely made it back out before the next pitch!), he is a great asset to the Boston Red Sox.
Manny Ramirez is what makes the Boston Red Sox, the Boston Red Sox. He is the single source of entertainment on their team. Every team needs a clown. The Florida Marlins have Reynel Pinto- The Marlins Picasso, the Boston Red Sox have Manny Ramirez- The Guy That Uses The Toilet On The Field In The Middle Of An Inning.
As easy as some may think it would be, it is beyond difficult to hate Manny Ramirez or to hold any ridiculousness against him. Hence, “Manny being Manny” was created. Manny is that lovable half retarded kid in your class that everyone felt bad for. Who else is going to hit a ground ball and then not budge from the batter’s box? Or who is going to request an incredibly obscene song to be played for his plate appearances? Who else is going to lose a $15,000 diamond ring while sliding into third? It’s just Manny being Manny. This little slogan allows Manny to get away with a lot of misbehavior, but can you really hold it against him?
So, what do you guys think? Is too much being made of “Manny being Manny”? Or should players be held accountable for all their actions no matter how well they swing their lumber?
Is Derek Jeter related to one of the world’s most famous gangsters from the prohibition era?
While surfing the net, like I normally do after a long day at work, I stumbled upon what seemed to be an incredibly strange photograph of Derek Jeter. It was a mugshot. I figured Jeter must have thought that it would have been funny to play dress up; but the closer I looked at the picture, the more clear it became that this was not Derek Jeter. Perhaps it was his great great grandfather? At this point, you never know. Anything is possible. Machine Gun Kelly- Derek Jeter’s ‘pappy’.
He was a Memphis boy that grew up to become the most wanted man in America, a man so tough he made Al Capone cry for his mommy, the true definition of a “bad @$$”. A fearless robber, a deadly master of the tommy gun; a man who signed his hold ups by blasting his name across billboards and walls.
Sadly, as cool as it would be for Jeter to have some gangster blood in his family history, I think it is incredibly unrealistic that these two are related. Kelly had strength, courage, and extreme cojones. Jeter? Well, he just has herpes.
