Goodbye, Manny; Hello, Jason!

Big news on the MLB front as today's trading deadline hit.

Red Sox fans are well aware of the recent friction between the team and one Manny Ramirez. Relations had always been been cordial at best, but it seemed that recent events made the Sox brass bound and determined to ship off the future Hall-of-Famer.

We at DITR have generally been Manny fans over the years and we certainly appreciate his efforts in helping us win two World Series titles after such a long drought. But we knew the writing was on the wall. Our only question was, what would we get in return?

Well, we will not squawk about what we got: Pirates All-Star Jason Bay!

We've been big Bay fans for a while now. We had the chance to visit Pittsburgh's PNC Park a couple of years ago and really enjoyed the experience. We loved the park and the Pirates instantly became our second favorite MLB squad (after our hometown Red Sox). Bay impressed us in particular, and how could he not?

(As a side note, and to throw in a plug for our other favorite sport, Jason's sister, Lauren Bay Regula, is one of the best softball pitchers on the planet. She'll be in Beijing as part of Canada's Olympic softball team. We hope she wins the silver medal!)

So, we're very excited about the Bay side of the deal.

Of course, you can't get something good without giving up something. Along with Manny, the Sox have also parted ways with reliever Craig Hansen and outfielder Brandon Moss, two players we've followed from their minor-league days in the Red Sox system.

Hansen has always been an enigma. He throws really hard and sometimes seems unhittable. Other times, he still throws really hard and is quite hittable. We remember when he first came up with the Double-A Portland Sea Dogs in 2005, soon after he was drafted and signed. He was lights out, not giving up a run while with the 'Dogs. He made his big-league debut with the Red Sox later that year and found that major league hitters are just a little bit harder to strike out than minor leaguers. Since then, he's been a work in progress. We wish him luck in the future.

Brandon Moss is a somewhat different story, as he's been one of our favorite players for a long time now. His rise through the system wasn't as fast as Hansen's, but that only meant that Sea Dogs fans got to watch him play for two seasons along the way. A fan favorite, he was instrumental in leading the 'Dogs to the Eastern League championship in 2006. During one of the playoff games we attended, Moss hit two home runs. What made it extra special was that it was his birthday! He was named MVP of the championship series, a well-deserved honor.

During the next off-season, we had a chance to meet Moss at a Red Sox rookies event. Hansen was also there, along with Jacoby Ellsbury, Clay Buchholz and other up-and-comers. We mentioned the birthday game to Brandon and he got a big kick out of it. A fine player and a real gentleman. We'll miss him, but hope this means his major league playing time will increase and he'll really get the chance to show what he can do.

It's a story not unlike last year's "big" Red Sox trade which found Eric Gagne joining the team and David Murphy (with Kason Gabbard and Engel Beltre) heading to Texas. Murphy, Moss's teammate with the Lowell Spinners, Portland Sea Dogs and Pawtucket Red Sox, has taken advantage of the situation and is making a strong case for himself as Rookie of the Year. We have no doubt that Moss will also excel in his new home.

An we certainly have no doubt that Jason Bay will be just what the doctor ordered for the Red Sox.

Welcome to Boston, Mr. Bay!