Just when we were trying to get over the hangover of Alex Rodriguez, another MLB superstar gets caught up in the steroid scandal. This time it's Manny Ramirez, arguably the best right-handed hitter the sport has seen in decades.
The Dodgers will be without their catalyst for 50 games in the midst of having the league's best record and started 13-0 at home, but that was with Ramirez. Their first game without Ramirez resulted in their first home-loss of the season, and it didn't make it any better that it was to the Nationals.
So every steroid case has a story behind it, and usually every players has a pile of excuses that normally don't add up. Ramirez had one very simple thing to say: "I'm sorry about this whole situation".
Ramirez was clearly torn down by this situation. Ramirez took a female fertility drug called hCG, which is a medication used to help the body naturally create testosterone. Steroid users take hCG after coming off of a cycle to help their body create testosterone again.
Ramirez says he didn't know it was banned and his doctor told him it was OK to take. We've all heard that story before. The primary use of hCG is what makes Ramirez look guilty of using steroids at one time, which he says he never did and that he took hCG for medical purposes. He didn't give anymore information on the subject after that.
The fishy part about this whole thing is that if Ramirez was using hCG purely for medical purposes, then why didn't he go through the MLB to find a medication that wasn't banned? With all of the scandals floating around and with everything that was at stake with Ramirez, I just can't comprehend how you could be so careless. He had to know he was being monitored due to himself being one of the best hitters in the game.
Either way, this will tarnish Ramirez's legacy, as it will do to every player that's been connected to steroids. It's a shame because Ramirez was such a pure hitter that was making a strong case for MVP early this season. He was batting .348 with six home runs and 20 RBI's.
Until all of the facts come out, however, we can't throw Ramirez in the same category as Barry Bonds, Jason Giambi, and Alex Rodriguez. So far he's handled the situation pretty well and he's been upfront about it, unlike Bonds, Rodriguez, and a handful of others.
At one time "Manny being Manny" was funny, but it's not so funny anymore.
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