When the trade deadline hit yesterday, it actually happened. Manny Ramirez was no longer a Red Sock traded in a three-team deal to the Dodgers with Pittsburgh’s Jason Bay landing in Beantown while the Pirates acquired prospects Andy LaRoche, Brandon Moss, Bryan Morris and Craig Hansen.

After seven-plus years swinging the bat like few right handed hitters have and helping lead the Red Sox to two world championships while the signature phrase “Manny Being Manny,” became a hit with fans in Massachusetts, the very laid back 36 year-old Santo Domingo native who starred for George Washington High School here in NYC is now headed west to Hollywood where Joe Torre will manage him. Ramirez can become a free agent at the end of the season but in the mean time will get to reacquaint himself with former Boston teammates Nomar Garciaparra and Derek Lowe and try to get the Dodgers into the playoffs. They currently trail the Diamondbacks by two games.

From our vantage point, the big slugger who brings 510 career home runs and 1,672 RBI’s plus a .312 lifetime average is one of the most colorful baseball stars in the game. For all the theatrics, he’s a player nobody wants to miss when he comes to the plate cause you know he’s capable of jacking one out with that perfect stroke which left the Green Monster so many times. Especially off Yankee pitchers. Nobody was more ecstatic than them yesterday. Ramirez kinda reminds me of Darryl Strawberry in that he also was a big athlete with a flair for the dramatic. And with that sweet swing, you had to see what he’d do. I can recall being fortunate enough to attend a three homer game as a Yankee where he victimized the White Sox back in 1996. That was freaking awesome and will stay with me just as witnessing troubled Met buddy Dwight Gooden toss a no-no on Athletic Sock Night shall for free due to snow versus the Royals on Opening Day.

That’s Manny too. He is an enigma who does things his way perhaps to a fault. In the end, that’s why the Red Sox finally pulled the trigger. Ramirez finished his Boston career with 273 homers slugging 33-or-better in his first six years while topping 40 three times and knocking in over 100 from 2001 to 2006. In 100 games this season, he was hitting .299 with 20 dingers and 68 RBI’s. Now, the 17-year veteran is moving to LA which 2004 World Series teammate Lowe is certainly excited about:

“I think people for some reason think he’s lazy and a bad teammate and that he doesn’t care. He’s none of the above. Does he do some goofy things? Absolutely. He does do some goofy things. But as far as preparation and knowing the game and wanting to win, there’s no way you put up those numbers year in and year out unless you’re a special talent and work at it. And he does both.”

Torre certainly likes being able to add a player of this caliber to an outfield which has struggled due to free agent bust Andruw Jones. Now, he has an everyday left fielder who can be penciled in the cleanup spot:

“When a player like Manny becomes available, I don’t think there’s a manager in baseball who wouldn’t say they’re interested. Manny’s certainly not a simple personality, that’s for sure. He’s complex. But I’ve seen him when he competes. … I’ve had some colorful personalities on my clubs like David Wells and Jimmy Leyritz. If you feel somebody’s going to help your club, you’ve got to find a way to make it work. And that’s my job. It’s a challenge, but I look forward to it.”

It will be strange to see Manny in Dodger blue as I’ve grown accustomed to seeing No.24 in that white and red Sock uniform take his cuts at the Yankees tormenting them over the years. Now, that dynamic duo of Manny and Big Papi are no more. Something I never imagined would happen. How will this affect his former club and can Bay, who’s never played on a winner really replace Ramirez and fit in helping the defending champs reach October again?

We won’t know the answer for quite a while. In the mean time, Manny will debut later tonight against another familiar face Randy Johnson in the second game of a big four-game set versus Arizona. Would it really shock anyone if he went yard helping his new team to a win?

For the Yanks, who went out and got crushed by the red hot Angels 12-6 on three three-run homers, they at least took solace knowing that they no longer have to deal with Manny in a big spot.

If you’re a Met fan, you’re wishing you had the chips to get the big slugger the rest of the way. Tale of two New York teams which changed places at 4 ET yesterday.