Major League Baseball News

As Aramis Ramirez reported to camp this week, the focus went from his slump in the playoffs to his involvement with cockfighting, a native ritual of the Dominican Republic. When asked about his picture on a cockfighting magazine, he declined to comment.

“I’m not going to talk about that. That’s personal, that’s a different culture down there,” Ramirez explains. Just last month Juan Marichal  and Pedro Martinez received similar criticism when spotted on a cockfighting video together.

C.C. Sabathia is fresh off of a Cy Young Award in ‘07, and he’s motivated as ever after losing to the Red Sox in the ALCS playoffs. However, being a free agent at the end of the year could only distract him, which is why he is waiting to discuss an extension until the end of the ‘08 season.

“I don’t want to go through the season thinking this will be my last year. I want to help my guys here win. Everybody knows how I feel about this place and this organization and the city,” he explains. “I’ve been here since I was 17 years old.”

Sabathia went 19-7 starting 34 games for the Cleveland Indians in 2007. He recorded a 3.21 ERA with 209 K’s and only 37 walks. He will lead the pack of free agents come season’s end.