It was the bottom of the seventh inning of the Boston Red Sox' 7-2 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Friday night, and, after being set down on strikes by Royals reliever Franklin Morales, embattled Red Sox left fielder Hanley Ramirez slumped his way back to the home dugout.

Before he could trudge down the dugout steps, however, Ramirez heard what has become a familiar cry from a Boston fan sitting just five rows behind. "Hanley, you suck!"

Rather than cowering behind the cover of the dugout as the fan most likely expected him to do, Ramirez stared the fan straight in the eyes and expressed with ferocity, "I know."

The fan continued his roast of the 31-year old, exclaiming that he would never be able to master left field (Ramirez' defensive metrics in 2015 ranks him as one of the worst outfielders in the MLB). Ramirez, all the while, just said with an emotionless expression, "I know."

In the heated exchange, Ramirez appeared to resemble a player simply fed up with the constant bashing he receives on a daily basis from both the Boston media and fans of the team, as well. Open up the Boston Globe on any given morning and you will find articles upon articles criticizing Ramirez for his lack of work ethic, his inability to defend Fenway Park's Green Monster in left field, his failure to condition himself, how the team is attempting to replace his spot in the field with the likes of Jackie Bradley Jr., and how former general manager Ben Cherington never should have inked him to a four-year, $88 million deal last winter in the first place.

Scan Twitter and you will find a legion of fans brutally critiquing Ramirez' performance in left field, with tweets demeaning Ramirez' effort defensively and blooper reels of his most egregious showings receiving hundreds of retweets. Just search "Hanley Ramirez" on the social networking site and the initial responses that come up proclaim that "a little league coach would've looked for a different position for Hanley Ramirez by this point," and that "Hanley Ramirez is the worst outfielder I have ever seen."

Even his own president of baseball operations, the newly hired Dave Dombrowski, appeared to criticize Ramirez' defensive play at his introductory news conference, stating that he was not convinced that the native Dominican could even play the position and that the Red Sox should not have assumed immediately after signing him that this was the case.

“What’s his best position? I’m not sure at this point. I haven’t seen him play left field very much," Dombrowski said. "They [MLB Network] had the No. 1-ranked left fielder going into 2015 as Hanley Ramirez, collectively. But I remember at the time saying, ‘How can people make that statement, since they don’t know if he can play left field or not?’ So it’s just interesting that a lot of other people there were making that summation that he can play left field.”

Of course, if Ramirez was able to re-create the .345 batting average he posted in 2013 with the Los Angeles Dodgers, both the Boston media and fans would likely withdraw their complaints, however this has not been the case.

Since the All-Star break, Ramirez has batted just 18-for-98 (.184) with seven RBIs. Lacking a single home run since July 11, he has struggled to supply both the slugging and the run-producing capabilities that the team originally had in mind when they signed him.

Without the ability to hit, it's easy for Red Sox Nation to point directly at Ramirez as the scapegoat for the team's struggles, as his production both at the plate and in left field has been nonexistent. However, this criticism may in fact be the reason that the ten-year veteran is pressing so hard at the plate, or struggling to pick up fly balls in front of the Green Monster.

Remember, it wasn't always this way. Ramirez smacked ten of his 19 home runs in 2015 in April, his initial month with the Red Sox, becoming just the second Boston batter to accomplish that feat in team history (designated hitter David Ortiz being the other). Scroll back to Ramirez' Twitter mentions in late April, and you will find nothing but encouraging words from fans, some proclaiming that the left fielder would be the piece that leads the team to their ninth World Series championship.

If Ramirez can improve on the .254 average and the .295 on-base percentage he has garnered over the course of this season as the team heads into the season's final month, there is no question that he can return to the good graces of at least some in Red Sox Nation.