Manny Ramirez has not played a game in Major League Baseball since 2011, but the former outfielder isn't planning on retiring anytime soon and is hopeful to come back to the MLB if any team would give him a chance.
Ramirez, 41, slugged 555 homers in 19 seasons in the Majors, but he quit baseball after he was caught with a second violation of the anti-doping program.
Ramirez, who had minor league stints with the Oakland Athletics and Texas Rangers over the last two seasons but quit after not being called up to the Major League clubs, said he has no plans to retire anytime soon.
"My qualities are still there and I just need an opportunity to continue showing that the 'Super Manny' can help a team," Ramirez said Thursday on Grandes en los Deportes on ESPN Radio 104.5 FM in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, ESPN.com reports.
Ramirez said no teams are interested in him but he would love the opportunity to suit up for a baseball game again in the MLB.
"For now, I have no team interested, but I'm still working," he told the program. "Maybe I don't have anything this week, but who knows? Maybe next week I could get a call,"
According to ESPN, Ramirez hit .352 with eight homers and 43 RBIs in 49 games with the Rhino EDA in Taiwan. The performance eventually netted Ramirez a minor league contract in Texas, where he hit .259 with three homers and 13 RBIs in 30 games for Triple-A Round Rock before being granted his release last season.
Ramirez received a call to return to Taiwan to play, but he's holding out for an MLB deal.
"Three weeks ago, I received a call from Taiwan to check if I wanted to return there, but I feel I can still help in MLB, in a role similar to Jason Giambi in Cleveland, for example," Ramirez told the show. "If it is God's will, I could play in MLB this season. I just need a team to open the doors. I can help in the field and in the clubhouse for the younger guys."
Having netted $200 million over his career, Ramirez said he doesn't care about money and that's not why he desires to return while Ramirez also said he doesn't believe there's a plot against him in the MLB.
"I can't say that there's anything against me because the Lord is the only one who reads the hearts of the people," Ramirez said via ESPN. "But one thing I can say: For a MLB team, it would be a blessing to have players like me and Miguel Tejada, only by our experience. But you never know what they are thinking. I can't complain about Texas. They gave me the opportunity. After my arrival from Taiwan, everybody were in game shape, and I felt I was in spring training."
On top of his 555 homers in his 19 seasons in the MLB, Ramirez has a .312 average along with 1,831 RBI.
Whether he takes the field for an MLB team to try and expand on those numbers remains to be seen.
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