Ramírez still talk of the town

NAPLES, Fla. -- Two questions raised as the general managers meetings concluded last night: Will Manny be Manny somewhere else in 2007, and can the Red Sox overcome Scott being Scott (as in agent Scott Boras) in the Daisuke Matsuzaka negotiations?

Nobody, including Theo Epstein, can predict what deals will emerge or which free agents will be donning Boston uniforms, though there's growing belief J.D. Drew will be in right field and Julio Lugo will be at shortstop. But teams feeling they have no shot at free agents Alfonso Soriano or Carlos Lee have made inquiries about Ramírez.

One National League GM said, "We asked about him, and I know other teams have asked about him. He's a great hitter and I think everyone knows the risk involved with his attitude and behavior. But we also know what he does when he plays. You can't find a better hitter in the game."

Ramírez has two years left on his contract at $38 million. (The team then has a two-year option.) That might be less than what Soriano will get.

With several teams boosted by new revenues, Ramírez might be more viable than he was last year at this time.

But one thing hasn't changed: The Red Sox won't give Ramírez away, following the same plan as last offseason, and they need someone to hit behind David Ortiz.

Ramírez's agent, Greg Genske, was at the GM meetings and had discussions with Epstein about Ramírez and another of his clients, free agent closer Danys Baez.

Genske offered little insight on Ramírez, revealing only that he had just returned from his vacation home in Brazil and was starting his offseason conditioning program near his Fort Lauderdale home.

"We talked to [Genske] generally about Manny and his free agents," said Epstein.

Genske wouldn't comment on whether he thought Ramírez would be traded, or whether he'd want a contract extension to accept a trade. Ramírez has 10-5 status (10 years in the big leagues and five years with one team), which allows him to veto trades.

Genske won't even acknowledge that Ramírez has asked for a trade.

Although Phillies GM Pat Gillick called Ramírez a "headache" he would not want to saddle manager Charlie Manuel with, Manuel might be able to convince Gillick to change his mind.

There are many teams looking to spend money on a hitter, but the Sox would have to have more than Drew and Lugo in place to let Ramírez go.

But the Sox have a bigger fish to fry -- namely Matsuzaka.

Boras views the bidding of $51.1 million for the right to negotiate with Matsuzaka separate from the actual contract, but major league sources indicate the Red Sox won't view it that way.

"He's out there talking about Randy Johnson and Roy Oswalt money, and I doubt that the Red Sox would do that, given the amount they bid," said a GM who lost out on the Matsuzaka bidding.

The Mets and Yankees had Matsuzaka pegged as a $6 million-$8 million player when they were formulating their bid processes, according to sources familiar with the formulas used by the teams. It seems unlikely the Red Sox would stray far from that.

Boras is trying to create some leverage for himself, but Matsuzaka might be under pressure to make a deal with Boston.

"The kid would look like a [expletive] because his country doesn't want him to come back," an American League scout said. "If he does come back, it would be all about the money and that doesn't fly in Japan."

There's been much speculation on how the contract will be structured. Many baseball people don't believe the Red Sox will go for the "out clause" that was in Hideki Matsui's deal, in which he could opt out after three years.

Matsui, however, was not a posted player when he received his three-year, $21 million deal in 2002. Matsuzaka is a posted player. Ichiro Suzuki also was a posted player, but he did not have an out clause in his original deal.

Boras is used to playing teams against each other in negotiations, but the Sox paid $51.1 million for exclusivity.

And don't rule out Roger Clemens joining the Sox staff. If the Sox can convince Clemens to waive his family clause request (he goes home to Texas between starts) and come to Boston as a closer, it would solve Boston's biggest need.

After four days at the GM meetings, Epstein is scheduled to return to Boston today to deal with Manny being Manny and Scott being Scott.

Nick Cafardo can be reached at cafardo@globe.com.