Ramirez has been all right in left

PHILADELPHIA -- It was about a month ago that Manny Ramírez reported to Red Sox camp wearing a Tim Brown jersey, new dreadlocks with blond streaks, a smile on his face, and a new resolve to be a happy Red Sox after having clamored to leave.

He vowed he wasn't going to let any little things get to him and possibly endanger a potential Hall of Fame career. And for a month Ramírez, who has 435 home runs, 199 as a Red Sox, has been true to his word.

Teammates, coaches, and manager Terry Francona have noticed a much more focused player, a team guy who has done and said all the right things. Also, in a vastly different and quieter clubhouse with the departures of, among others, Johnny Damon, Kevin Millar, and Bill Mueller, Ramírez has been interacting more than ever.

Following yesterday's 5-0 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park, Ramírez hugged Alejandro Machado, Enrique Wilson, Manny Delcarmen, and others who were being reassigned and leaving for destinations other than the team charter to Texas for today's opener.

Francona even said that before yesterday's game Ramírez asked him if he could just take batting practice rather than play a few innings.

Francona, who had intended to get Ramírez an at-bat or two, was impressed that Ramírez came to him and talked. A small thing, perhaps, but one that didn't go unnoticed by the manager, who certainly wants clear communication with his players.

''He told me he felt more comfortable just taking BP," Francona said. ''I appreciated it. He's been great. He's been unbelievable. He's had more consistent at-bats than anybody."

Ramírez's demeanor may be new, but his talent isn't.

''His spring training is way ahead of his last three years," hitting coach Ron Jackson said. ''He's got a great chance to come right in here and hit the ground running."

Why?

''He was ready," Jackson said. ''You could tell he had done a lot of work in the offseason. The other thing is we made some adjustments with his hands later in the year and he got hot. And I think he's just continued that into spring training.

''You never know with hitters, but he has a chance to have a monster year. I know people were concerned last year because he was hitting .229, or whatever it was in May, and he got off to a slow start. But he had a great year for a guy who we had to work with on a few things. Now he's just right where he should be and the season hasn't even started yet."

While Ramírez politely declined interviews yesterday and has not done any since showing up at camp, it is noticeable that he's been interacting more with his teammates. Perhaps it was a stroke of genius to surround Ramírez with players he's familiar with, such as Wilson, Julian Tavarez, and Alex Gonzalez, in addition to David Ortiz. Ramírez also has taken a mentoring role with Wily Mo Peña, a young, powerful hitter who could learn from Ramírez's plate discipline.

When Ramírez came to camp in March he said he was not going anywhere. He was being tugged at to play for the Dominican team in the World Baseball Classic, and speculation even arose that he would leave the Sox to play with the Dominicans in the semifinals. But Ramírez stayed with the Sox, making numerous long bus trips and becoming more a part of the team than in previous seasons.

Ramirez, who stroked 45 homers and knocked in 144 runs last season, stayed away from the early portion of camp because he wanted to remain in Miami to complete his workout regimen. That brought about a few snide remarks and raised eyebrows from his critics, but Ramírez appeared to be in excellent shape once he joined the team.

One of his concerns was strengthening his hamstrings, which have caused him problems in the past. He hasn't run out ground balls hard in an effort to preserve his legs, but they have held up well, not only in running the base paths, but in getting to balls in left field.

Taking advantage of the team's massage therapy and other therapeutic care, Ramírez appears fresh and ready to go.

Of course, the next step is Ramírez returning to Boston and dealing with the privacy issues that came up last season. He had lived at the Ritz, but he put his condo up for sale. Sox officials, asked yesterday whether those issues have been resolved, had no information.

When asked last month whether he was happy, Ramírez would only say, ''I'm here. I'm here." While that was not a sign of happiness, his actions since appear to indicate that he is.