New Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein hinted earlier this month that Aramis Ramirez will likely be “moving on,” but the veteran third baseman’s agent said something much more definitive earlier today.
According to Carrie Muskat of MLB.com, Ramirez’s agent Paul Kinzer said “that ship has sailed” as far as his client re-signing with the Cubs.
Ramirez declined his portion of a $16 million mutual option with the Cubs late last month. The 33-year-old rebounded from a subpar 2010 season to hit .306/.361/.510 with 26 homers, 93 RBI and an .871 OPS over 626 plate appearances in 2011.
Kinzer told Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com that Ramirez is looking for either a four-year contract or a three-year deal with an option. When you consider that the alternatives among free agent third baseman include the likes of Wilson Betemit, Casey Blake, Eric Chavez, Mark DeRosa and Kevin Kouzmanoff, it’s not outrageous to think he could get the deal he wants.
