Morning sports update: 48-year-old Manny Ramirez set to make Australian Baseball League debut

"He's going to hit some long balls this season."

Manny Ramirez in Sydney as he prepares to play baseball at age 48. Dan Himbrechts/AAP Image via AP

December 16, 2020

3 minutes to read

The Celtics got underway in the NBA preseason on Tuesday night, losing to the 76ers, 108-99.

Several new players made their (preseason) Boston debuts, including veteran free agent signing Jeff Teague as well as rookies Aaron Nesmith and Payton Pritchard.

Manny Ramirez’s latest baseball adventure: Nearly a decade after last appearing in Major League Baseball, former Red Sox outfielder Manny Ramirez is still pursuing a career as a player in the sport.

Now 48, Ramirez’s latest attempt to keep playing professionally is in Australia. Though his star status may have dimmed slightly — as was notably demonstrated in a recent viral TikTok — the MVP of the 2004 World Series was praised by the manager of the Sydney Blue Sox (who Ramirez will play for this season).

“We knew there’d be a Manny show but it’s been a pleasure,” Blue Sox manager Shane Barclay told the Associated Press. “The buy-in from [Ramirez] has been magnificent and just watching him swing a bat, you’re going, ‘There’s no way this guy is 48.’

“He’s an incredible athlete,” Barclay added. “He’s legit and here to play and bought in in every way. He’s going to hit some long balls this season.”

The Australian season gets underway for Sydney on Thursday against the defending league champion Melbourne Aces.

Trivia: What pitcher did the Red Sox select in the 2005 MLB draft using the compensartory pick awarded to the team following Pedro Martinez’s departure in free agency?

(Answer at the bottom).

Hint: He last pitched in the Major Leagues in 2019 for the Blue Jays.

More from Boston.com:

Scott Boras made the “sweet” case for Jackie Bradley Jr. in free agency

‘JBJ is kind of the PBJ of the major leagues …’ – Scott Boras pic.twitter.com/CjkY2376C3

— Rob Bradford (@bradfo) December 16, 2020

Paul Pierce and ESPN experts weighed in on Giannis Antetokounmpo signing an extension:

On this day: In 1973, the Celtics defeated the Lakers 115-110, with center Dave Cowens scoring 35 points, dishing eight assists, and pulling down 21 rebounds.

The game was early affirmation of the Celtics’ dominance in the 1973-1974 season. Boston moved its record to 23-6 with the win, while Los Angeles — searching for a team identity in the post-Wilt Chamberlain era after his retirement earlier that year — fell to 18-15.

The Lakers, coached by former Boston shooting guard Bill Sharman, still managed to win the Pacific Division at 47-35, but it was Tommy Heinsohn’s Celtics who went on to win the title (the team’s first after the Bill Russell era).

Celtics Lakers 1973