Manny Ramirez had a modest impact in his debut with the Chicago White Sox Wednesday, getting a blooped single in a 6-4 Major League Baseball win over Cleveland.
Ramirez, wearing the No.99 he started using in his two seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers, went one-for-three.
The 38-year-old Ramirez grounded out in the second inning, struck out in the fourth, hit a single to right in the seventh and was hit in the back by a 70 mph pitch in the ninth.
Ramirez admitted he was a little rusty. Because of injuries, he's made only five starts since June 29.
"I'm trying to take it a pitch at a time," he said. "I haven't played for a long time. I'm just trying to get my rhythm and see as many pitches as I can. But I'm getting there."
One of the first orders of business for Ramirez with his new team could be sporting a new look to conform with the team's strict dress code.
White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf's policy is that his players have short hair.
"It seems like everywhere I go, people want to talk about the hair," said Ramirez, who has long hair.
So, will he chop it off? "Why not?" he said.
Chicago manager Ozzie Guillen knows it takes more than the 12-time all-star Ramirez to win.
"A lot of people expect Manny to come in here and be the saviour," Guillen said.
"We have 20 or 30 guys out there pulling the same rope. Manny does not have to carry this ballclub. I hope he does. Everybody does.
"He's going to make our lineup better. He'll make people better around him. Our hope is to keep him healthy, play him as much as we can, and just have some fun."
That's something that has been missing from Ramirez's life the past year.
Ramirez was claimed off waivers from the Dodgers for the final month of the Major League Baseball playoff chase.
With Wednesday's win, Chicago improved to 3-0 on a 10-game trip as it tries to catch first-place Minnesota atop the American League Central.
Ramirez missed a substantial part of the season with a string of injuries, including a sore hamstring and strained calf muscle.
The move to Chicago caps two turbulent seasons for Ramirez in Los Angeles in which he was paid over 40 million dollars.
In May 2009 MLB's disciplinary officials slapped Ramirez with a 50-game suspension for violating the league's drug policy.
Ramirez batted .348 before the suspension and just .269 in the 77 games he played after the suspension.
Ramirez could see limited time in the outfield with the White Sox but will be used primarily as Chicago's designated hitter.
Copyright 2010 AFP American Edition
