BOSTON -- A few thoughts in the aftermath of Tuesday's day-night news conference doubleheader with Pablo Sandoval and Hanley Ramirez:

• Boston Red Sox pitcher Joe Kelly was responsible for one of the worst days of Ramirez's career, when he drilled Ramirez with a 95 mph fastball while pitching for the Cardinals in the first inning of Game 1 of the 2013 National League Championship Series. Turns out that the pitch fractured a rib, even as Ramirez remained in the game and played all 13 innings. He was a late scratch for Game 2, but played the final four games of the series, which the Cardinals won in six games. Ramirez, the Dodgers' best offensive player when he was on the field in 2013, had just two singles in 15 at-bats in the series and did not drive in a run.

Ramirez impressed the Dodgers by his determination to play through that injury, though all the injuries that sidelined him over the past two years (elbow, thumb, shoulder, calf, hamstring, oblique, back, ribs) didn't exactly earn him iron-man status in Los Angeles. More than one Sox fan has read of how much time Ramirez spent in the trainer's room and was reminded of J.D. Drew.

This was an important year for Ramirez, his walk season, and he came into camp determined to prove to the Dodgers that he was deserving of an extension and should remain at shortstop. But even his admirers admit that when Ramirez played day-in and day-out, you could see the toll that took on him physically, especially in the field, where his .961 fielding percentage was the lowest among everyday shortstops.

By the end of the season, talent evaluators were questioning whether he could even handle a move to third, and with Ramirez turning 31 in December, it's reasonable to wonder if he can give the Sox 1,300 innings in the field. For all the talk about Sandoval eventually becoming a DH, Ramirez might wind up the more likely candidate to eventually become a bat-only regular. A talent evaluator for another club said he thought Ramirez would sign a two- or three-year deal to be a DH already.

Red Sox general manager Ben Cherington said that the topic of DH was not brought up to either Sandoval or Ramirez in the course of negotiations. Having just placed an $88 million wager on Ramirez holding up physically, Cherington said he wasn't concerned.

"We're confident he can play a lot," Cherington said. "We made a significant investment. We went through everything with him, we had access to his history, we spent time with him. Actually mostly in his time with the Dodgers he was very in tune with what he has to do. We think we have a staff that maybe can improve on some of the things he's done that helps him stay out there. We wouldn't have entered this if we didn't think he'd be on the field."

Have to think that Dan Dyrek, the team's director of sports medicine service, is already on the job. And by the way, even though Grady Sizemore washed out here, he did manage to make it through a full season with the Phillies, a tribute to Sizemore's incredible will but also Dyrek's healing touch. If Ramirez can stay in the lineup, he is eminently capable of hitting 25 home runs and 40 doubles.

• Ramirez left his history of being a clubhouse malcontent back in Florida; he did not clash with Don Mattingly the way he did with then-Marlins manager Fredi Gonzalez, and enjoyed a good relationship with the team's front office. But there also was a sense that things weren't quite right in the Dodgers' clubhouse between Ramirez and some of his teammates. Maybe with David Ortiz, his "big brother," running interference for him, that won't be the case in Boston.

• What does it bode for Ramirez in Boston that midway through last season, he stopped talking to the Los Angeles media, which doesn't exactly have a reputation of going for the jugular? Cherington, who has admitted to being a strong advocate for signing Carl Crawford, who turned out to be a terrible fit here, said you can never be certain how a player will adapt to this environment.

"You never know for sure," he said. "We do the homework. ... The one thing that keeps bubbling in your head, does a guy want to be here or not. Are we talking a guy into being here or does he really want to be here?

"In Pablo's case, this is not someone coming from a bad situation. He was with a good organization, he had a good relationship with the organization, he was a popular player, but he wanted to be here. All the [bidding] teams in the end were roughly in the same area [contractually] but he's a guy who wanted to be here. That's appealing. It gives us some comfort.

"Hanley reaches out, says I want to be there, I'll play anywhere, I want a chance to do what I didn't get a chance to do after the trade. We were able to work out a contract that makes sense. It doesn't guarantee anything, but when I think back on what works or doesn't work, that's one thing that has made a little difference."

• Sandoval's agent, Gustavo Vasquez, said that Sandoval did not elect to sign with the Red Sox until Sunday, and echoed Sandoval's assertion that accepting a new challenge was the deciding factor. The San Diego Padres actually offered a longer deal, Vasquez said. He also insisted the Red Sox did not bring up Sandoval's weight issues during negotiations.

Sandoval could not have been more unequivocal in stating he intends to play third base for the rest of his career. A key figure in making sure that happens? Rafael Alvarez, Sandoval's personal trainer, who in the past had Sandoval running up Camelback Mountain in Arizona as part of his offseason training. That won't be the case this winter, as Sandoval has relocated his offseason home from Arizona to Florida.

• Not buying that the Sox are seriously considering Yoenis Cespedes to play center field next season. He may play center in 2015, but it won't be for Boston.