Come Friday night, Manny Ramirez's signature dreadlocks could be merely a Hollywood -- or is it Mannywood? -- memory. The newly acquired White Sox slugger has a haircut appointment scheduled with Montro, his long-time barber in Boston, on the day Chicago opens a series against the Red Sox, according to the Boston Globe.
The Globe cited a text message from the Montro himself in reporting the news, and a visit to the hairdresser's Web site shows a YouTube video of Ramirez's new manager, Ozzie Guillen, getting a haircut. Montro was the man behind Ramirez's choice of the jersey No. 99 when he was traded from Boston to Los Angeles in 2008, a number he has decided to continue wearing on the South Side of Chicago.
Ramirez wore 24 with his first two teams, the Indians and Red Sox.
If Ramirez goes through with the trim -- and who ever really knows with Manny -- that would appear to put to bed an issue that has become oddly contentious in recent days.
White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf has a team-wide policy on the length of hair, but when Ramirez, and his flowing locks, joined the team in Cleveland on Tuesday night, there was no clear indication that a new 'do was in the offing.
"As a manager I will appreciate if he (cuts it)," Guillen told reporters. "But if Manny told me he doesn't want to do it, the only power I have in my hands is to bench him. We are bringing Manny here to play."




