Manny has always been gracious to his supporters.

Too many people forget to honour the vows they make in distress. Depending on your beliefs and the prominence of religion in your life a harrowing situation may leave you asking God for a favour. It can be a turbulence-filled airplane flight or a call notifying you of a sick friend or family member that leaves you pleading, "God, if you can get me through this situation, I promise I'll be a better person." Not to insinuate that religion had anything to do with it but perhaps after learning of the Red Sox desire to part ways, Manny made a vow to himself, "If given the chance to stay with Boston I will show them the true Manny Ramirez that hides behind the misinterpreted, laissez-faire, shy demeanor that people currently see me as." Judging by Ramirez's effort to connect with the fans, the media and his teammates it certainly appears that Manny is honoring those vows he made in his own distress.

The hitting has always been there. Manny has been one of the most consistent and feared hitters in baseball over the last 10 years. Each year he's a lock to hit .300, 30 HRs and 100 RBI so it's no surprise to once again see Manny near or atop many AL hitting categories: 5th in batting average, 1st in HR, 6th in RBI, 6th in hits, 1st in slugging percentage. The difference between the 2003 version of Manny and the 2004 version we see now is apparent by the off-field actions being displayed. In past years fans have been given only rare glimpses of how much Manny really cares, whether it be his first statement to Boston fans after his 2000 signing, "I'm just tired to see New York always win" or to the open hugging embrace adopted by Manny and all his teammate. And when I say hugs I'm not talking about one of those cool guy shoulder-to-shoulder soul hugs. I'm talking about a full on bear hug.

There have been three significant actions taken to illustrate the change in Manny:

1.) He became a U.S. citizen: Ramirez's family moved from the Dominican Republic when he was 13 and 19 years later Ramirez applied and finally became a U.S. citizen. In his first game back as a U.S. citizen he ran onto the field with an American flag to the acknowledgement of the Boston faithful and in his first at-bat he was greeted with a standing ovation. Becoming a U.S. citizen goes a long way in showing Ramirez's effort at acceptance and comfort in knowing this is a place he can officially call home.

2.) He has improved his relationship with the media: From the start of spring training Manny has opened up to the media and made a concerted effort to not allow his lack of comfort and command of the English language to hinder his public speaking. In his early days with the Cleveland Indians, the team would often aid the slugger in leaving through the back door rather than face the questions posed from the media. The media acts as a bridge between a player and the fans and when players fail to make themselves available for a comment they lose the major and sometimes only, opportunity to connect with the fans.

3.) He has offered to defer salary: Ramirez has offered to defer around $5 million of his annual salary to keep soon-to-be free agents like Pedro Martinez in the fold. "I'll loan them a contract. Whatever they want - how much money do I need? It's for Pedro." In this and age of free agent spending and the importance of keeping important players away from rivals a gesture like Ramirez's to defer salary is the ultimate way to show your devotion to the team and effort to want to keep the group together.

	Ramirez is a leading candidate for AL MVP.

There's a common response when teammates or the media are pressed for a response to one of Ramirez's adventurous plays in the outfield or a reaction to one of the comments or lack there of Ramirez made after the game; "That's just Manny being Manny." So perhaps this new Manny is still just "Manny being Manny" but simply showing the side that's more comfortable with himself, the media and his surroundings. Too many people mistakenly take silence as disinterest or not caring. MLB's biggest reclamation project this year is not the Montreal Expos. It is Manny Ramirez: Triple Crown Threat, RBI Machine, AL MVP candidate, and now we can add outspoken ballplayer to the list.