On July 25, after sitting out a game against the Seattle Mariners with a sore knee, Ramirez was slated to start against the Yankees. However, several minutes before the game, he informed manager Terry Francona, through a bench coach, that he would not be playing. During the series, Ramirez was directed to an area hospital for MRIs on both his knees; the results showed no damage. When back in action, Ramirez frequently failed to run out ground balls. Assuming that this was due to his displeasure about his contract situation (Ramirez could become a free agent at season's end, but the Red Sox held 2 years of team options they had not yet exercised), many Red Sox fans and reporters, including Dan Shaughnessy of the "Boston Globe", called for Ramirez to be traded. Despite all these distractions, Ramirez did continue to hit solidly when on the field, as he batted .299 with 20 home runs and 68 RBI through the first 100 games of the season.