Summary

Among the most prolific sluggers in the history of Major League Baseball, Manny Ramirez possesses a rare combination of quick hands and a smooth, powerful stroke that has made him one of the most productive hitters of his generation. Identified as a potential superstar when he was a teenager, Ramirez developed his immense talent into a long and successful career, highlighted by World Series championships, including the astonishing Boston Red Sox win in 2004. However, Ramirez has also been viewed by many as a frustrating character, whose impressive record of accomplishments is tainted by unusual behavior and a suspension for using a banned performance-enhancing drug. Once described by a sportswriter as "endearing, aggravating, clueless, and clutch," Manny Ramirez remains an enormously important and compelling figure in the world of sports.

In this colorful new biography, readers will find an engaging narrative telling how Ramirez has persevered to become one of the best hitters in baseball and how he approaches life both on and off the diamond.

Specifications

Full-color photographs. Feature boxes. Footnotes. Chronology and timeline. Sidebars. Bibliography. Web sites. Further reading. Notes. Index.

About the Author(s)

Ian C. Friedman is the author of Latino Athletes, Freedom of Speech and the Press, and Education Reform, all for Facts On File. He is the coauthor of A Biographical Dictionary of Presidents and American Inventors, Entrepreneurs, and Business Visionaries. A graduate of the University of Michigan and the Harvard Graduate School of Education, Friedman has worked as a teacher in Los Angeles and Chicago and has presented at several history education conferences across the United States.