After 8 seasons, the Alexei Ramirez era seems to have come to an end on the south side, as the White Sox announced yesterday that they had declined his option for 2016, making the 34 year old shortstop a free agent.  After having arguably the best season of his career in 2014, earning his first All Star selection and his second Silver Slugger, Ramirez struggled for much of the first half in 2015.  He rebounded in the second half, but still finished the year with the lowest batting average and OPS of his career.

That said, Ramirez might get a chance to stick around.  Tim Anderson, the top White Sox prospect, is at least a year away from the big leagues, so the team may try to work out a restructured deal with Ramirez for less than the $10 million he was owed under the option.  If this is the end of the road for Ramirez, it leaves John Danks as the last member of the 2008 division champions on the White Sox roster.

Ramirez’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were: