Dustin Pedroia was thrilled to see former Red Sox teammate David Ortiz be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame on Tuesday, but he doesn’t think Manny Ramirez should join Ortiz in Cooperstown.
Appearing on The Athletic’s Hall of Fame Special with Ken Rosenthal, Pedroia said he believes the fact Ramirez twice tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs should keep him out of the Hall of Fame.
Rosenthal asked Pedroia if he viewed Ramirez as a Hall of Famer or as someone who was a great player but should be in a different category because of his controversial past. Pedroia said he views Ramirez as someone who is “probably the second part.” (You can watch the full interview here.)
“Obviously, right-handed hitter, he’s one of a kind,” Pedroia said. “Obviously, there’s rules (governing PED use). That’s where I’m kind of at. I look at my own situation. I played at 5-foot-8, 165 pounds and having a great career and one slide deters my career. Instead of trying to take something that could maybe help me out health-wise so I could play a longer career, I chose not to do that. I value the game and try to play the right way and set the example for my kids. Everybody’s different. Everybody has their own way about them. Everybody has their own choices to make. I’m not one to judge him or anything like that. I just can speak for me.”
Pedroia implied that his stance on steroid use is strong because of his decision to avoid taking any illegal substances while rehabbing the severe left knee injury he suffered when Manny Machado slid into him in April 2017. Pedroia made multiple comeback attempts but was limited to just nine games in 2018 and 2019 due to recurring knee issues and officially retired last year.
Ramirez, conversely, tested positive on two occasions. He was suspended for 50 games in May 2009, then 100 games in April 2011 before retiring. He received just 28.9% of the vote in 2022 (well short of the 75% threshold required for election) and is a longshot to be elected in his four remaining years of eligibility.
Despite his reservations about Ramirez’s Hall candidacy, Pedroia still admires the slugger from their time together in the Sox’ lineup in the mid-2000s.
“Playing with Manny, it felt good when he was hitting. I can tell you that,” Pedroia said. “You’d get a little nervous when they hit a fly ball out to left.”
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