Selected with the 13th pick in the 1991 amateur draft, the 21-year-old Ramirez made his major league debut on September 2, 1993.  In six full seasons with the Indians (and parts of two others), Ramirez made four All Star teams, finished in the top ten in the MVP voting three times and won an RBI title (165 in 1999).  He topped the 30 homerun plateau five times and twice hit over 40.  During Ramirez’s tenure with the Tribe, Cleveland won the AL Central five times and captured two AL pennants.  A free agent following the 2000 season, Manny inked an 8-year, $160 million contract with the Red Sox in December.

The enigmatic slugger will best be remembered for his time in Boston. An All Star in each season, he garnered headlines for his quirky behavior as much as his stellar play.  Teamed up with fellow Dominican David Ortiz, Ramirez anchored the line-up for two World Series winning teams.  It was also in Boston where Ramirez grew his trademark dreadlocks and the infamous phrase “Manny being Manny” was coined.  In 2004, the year the Red Sox finally ended their 86-year championship drought, Ramirez was spectacular, leading the AL in homers (43), slugging percentage (.613) and OPS (1.009) while hitting .308 and driving in 130 runs. In 14 postseason games that year, he hit .350 (21 for 60) and drove in 11 runs. By 2008 however, Ramirez had worn out his welcome in Beantown and, in the final year of his contract, was dealt to the Dodgers on July 31 in a three team trade involving the Pirates that netted Boston OF Jason Bay.

Ramirez was an instant hit in LA. He hit .396/.486/.743 with 17 homers and 53 RBI in the final 53 games of the 2008 season, powering the Dodgers to an NL West title.  “Mannywood” was born.  After an acrimonious offseason which included very public contract negotiations, Ramirez inked a 2-year, $54 million contract with the Dodgers in May.  Manny continued his torrid pace early in the 2009 season before he was slapped with a 50 game suspension on May 7 for testing positive for a banned substance.  It soon surfaced that Ramirez had reportedly also came up positive back in 2003 during Major League Baseball's survey testing.  He was never the same. On August 30, 2010, after appearing in just 66 games and hitting only 8 homeruns, Ramirez was claimed by the White Sox off waivers. Happy to unload his salary, the Dodgers awarded him to Chicago without compensation.

The 38-year-old provided little impact for the White Sox during their stretch run, compiling jut two extra base hits in 88 plate appearances.  A free agent following the season, Ramirez inked a 1-year, $2 million contract with Tampa Bay on January 21.

The former superstar’s stay in Tampa was brief.  After appearing in five games - hitting dismal .059 (1 for 17) - and facing a 100 game suspension for again testing positive for a banned substance, Ramirez abruptly retired on April 8. 

He finished his career with a .312/.411/.585 batting line, 555 homeruns, 1,831 RBI and 2,574 hits in 2,302 games. In 111 postseason games, Ramirez hit .285/.394/.544 with 29 homers and 78 RBI.