Manny Ramirez

Known as a complete hitter who could hit for both power and average, and widely regarded as one of the best right-handed hitters of his generation, Ramirez finished his career with a lifetime .312 batting average, 555 home runs (15th all-time), and 1,831 RBI (18th all-time).

In 111 postseason games, Ramirez posted a .285 batting average with 29 home runs and 78 RBI.

Ramirez was born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic to Aristides and Onelcida Ramirez and spent 13 years living there.

As a child, Ramirez was obsessed with baseball.

When he was eight years old, his grandmother got him a Dodgers uniform with the number 30 on the back, which he considers to be one of his most prized possessions.

Manuel Arístides Ramírez Onelcida (born May 30, 1972) is a Dominican-American former professional baseball outfielder.

He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for parts of 19 seasons.

He played with the Cleveland Indians, Boston Red Sox, Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago White Sox, and Tampa Bay Rays before playing one season at the Chinese Professional Baseball League in Taiwan.

Ramirez is recognized for having great batting skill and power.

He was a nine-time Silver Slugger and was one of 28 players to hit 500 career home runs.

His 21 grand slams are third all-time, and his 29 postseason home runs are the most in MLB history.

In 1985, he moved to the Washington Heights neighborhood of New York City with his parents.

He often played ball at the nearby Snake Hill, the same place Lou Gehrig played during his childhood.

Despite living just a short distance from Yankee Stadium, Ramirez rooted for the Toronto Blue Jays, who had as he described his Dominican heroes George Bell and Tony Fernández on its roster; he attended games when the Blue Jays were in town.

Ramirez attended George Washington High School from 1987 to 1991, leaving at the age of 19 without graduating.

During his time on the team, GWHS was seeing a large increase in the number of immigrants.

This was apparent, as GWHS's baseball team was composed entirely of Dominicans.

As a youth, Ramirez preferred to not be the center of attention and was often very modest.

During his time at GWHS, he led his team to three straight division championships.

As a junior in 1990, he had a batting average of .633 and hit 16 home runs.

He was drafted by the Cleveland Indians in the first round of the 1991 MLB draft, 13th overall.

He was a three-time all-city selection in baseball, and as a high school senior was named New York City Public School Player of the Year in 1991, hitting for a .650 batting average with 14 home runs in 22 games.

He made his MLB debut on September 2, 1993.

In 1994, Ramirez became a major league regular, and finished second in voting for the Rookie of the Year Award.

By 1995, he had become an All-Star.

He was with the Indians in playoff appearances in 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, and 1999; this included an appearance in the 1995 and 1997 World Series.

He appeared in 12 All-Star Games, with a streak of eleven consecutive games beginning in 1998 that included every season that he played with the Red Sox.

Ramirez was born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.

When he was 13 years old, he moved to New York City with his parents, Onelcida and Aristides.

He attended George Washington High School and became a baseball standout.

In 1999, Ramirez set the Indians' single-season RBIs record with 165 RBIs.

He was inducted into the New York City Public School Athletic League Hall of Fame in 1999.

After the 2000 season, Ramirez signed with the Boston Red Sox.

During his time in Boston, Ramirez and teammate David Ortiz became one of the best offensive tandems in baseball history.

Ramirez led the Red Sox to World Series Championships in 2004 and 2007 before being traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2008 as part of a three-team deal that also involved the Pittsburgh Pirates.

In, Ramirez was suspended 50 games for violating baseball's drug policy by taking human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), a women's fertility drug that is often taken after steroids.

In the spring of 2011, Ramirez was informed by MLB of another violation of its drug policy, and a 100-game suspension.

He chose to retire on April 8 rather than be suspended.

However, in September 2011, Ramirez wished to be reinstated and agreed in December with the league to a reduced 50-game suspension.

Though he played at various points in the Oakland Athletics, Texas Rangers, and Chicago Cubs systems, as well as internationally, Ramirez did not appear in another Major League game.