OAKLAND, Calif. – Manny Ramirez asked for and was granted his release by the Oakland Athletics. Ramirez says that he hopes to play again, but that the A’s did not have room for him at this time. “The A’s treated me amazingly during all this time, but sadly didn’t have space for me and this is something I can’t control,” Ramirez said. Ramirez signed a minor-league deal with Oakland in February and hit .302 with 14 RBIs in 17 games with Triple-A Sacramento. he had served a 50 game suspension for violating Major League Baseball’s drug policy last year. Ramirez, who has 555 career homers and 1,831 RBIs, retired last season rather than serve a 100-game suspension for failing a second drug test.
