When Jack McKeon was hired by the Florida Marlins as the team’s interim manager Monday, his first order of business was to bench shortstop Hanley Ramirez for that day’s game. McKeon said he was benching Hanley for not running hard enough during Sunday’s game. A report in The Miami Herald posted Tuesday evening via Hardball Talk suggests McKeon may have benched Ramirez for a different reason.
The Herald reports that Hanley was last to arrive for McKeon’s meeting Monday when he addressed the team (the Palm Beach Post says he was late). Hanley says he shows up at 3:30 on game days, but the expectation was that players would arrive early for the new manager. Left fielder Logan Morrison reportedly ripped into Hanley for being late to the meeting. He also reportedly suggested that Hanley’s tardiness (he arrives to the park later than most teammates) is contributing to his poor batting.
Because I’m not around the team enough to know what time Ramirez arrives at the park each day (not to mention if it’s the same routine he employed during his All-Star seasons), I will leave that out. But I will say that showing up last for the new manager’s team meeting shows disrespect, so I can understand if that’s why he was benched.
What’s sad is that such a talented player continues to be involved in issues suggesting he’s not a good team leader. In 2009, Dan Uggla questioned his toughness and desire to win. Last year he was yanked for not hustling after a booted ball. Ramirez has shown he can be a great player, but as the franchise player he should also be a great team leader. It’s pretty indisputable that he’s not, and that is a shame.
