Manny would?

OK, first thing's first: Manny Ramirez used steroids. I saw a comment from a reader in USA Today that said, "I believe Ramirez even though I didn't believe guys like Clemens and McGwire." He believes what? Ramirez was on a women's fertility drug, a drug commonly used to kick start the body's testosterone development after finishing a steroid cycle. And he dropped his appeal and accepted a 50-game suspension, thereby forfeiting about $8 million in salary.

He dropped his appeal, put up a very minimal fight through the media, and was on a women's fertility drug. Manny Ramirez used steroids.

This means that Manny Ramirez--whose career features a .315 average, 533 home runs and 1,745 RBI--has a darn good chance of NOT making the Hall of Fame. He joins Mark McGwire, Rafael Palmeiro, Alex Rodriguez, Gary Sheffield, Jose Canseco and Jason Giambi as one of the 50 players with the most home runs all-time who may not make their way to Cooperstown.

But even more worrisome than this one case is the fact that there were 104 players who tested positive in 2003, and to me it seems inevitable that these names will trickle out at some point, either one-by-one or all at once. If you ask me, these names need to come out sooner rather than later. It will be extremely difficult for MLB and its fans to digest this information, no doubt, but we might as well deal with it instead of letting it linger.

The fact that MLB suspended perhaps the best hitter in the game for 50 games is a good sign. They put together a commission to decide what to do about this huge cloud hovering over the game, and now they've followed through on one of the recommendations, proving it wasn't just lip service (Ramirez is not the first to be suspended 50 games, but his stature is just a teensy bit higher than that of J.C. Romero, Sergio Mitre and Kelvin Pichardo).

MLB seems to be moving in the right direction; it doesn't seem that the same can be said for the Players' Association. MLBPA continues to fight against blood-testing, the only way to test for human growth hormone, or HGH. MLBPA can't help but focus on the fact that all these monster numbers have resulted in monster contracts for its players, so instead of working with MLB to clean up the game, they continue to work for themselves and laugh all the way to the bank.

I simply can't figure out why all the players who aren't using steroids wouldn't want to do everything in their power to make sure they're not going up against artificially-enhanced competition. And don't get me wrong: MLB deserves lots and lots of blame for the so-called steroid era, but while they seem to be working to get the train back on the tracks, the Players' Association is apparently waiting to derail it should that happen.

MLB notes
-Cardinals OF Rick Ankiel crashed headfirst into the outfield wall earlier this week, and left the field on a stretcher. Though he apparently told Chris Duncan he was fine as he laid on the ground and left the hospital after X-rays were negative, he has a bruised right shoulder and overall soreness, and will be out for 15 days.

-Are you serious, A-Rod? In his season debut Friday, he hit a three-run homer on the first pitch he saw. One steroid user is out till July, another one wasted no time getting back into the swing of things.

-Zach Greinke (6-0, 0.40) goes for his seventh win against the Angels tonight.

Taking a spin around the world of sports

A-Rod out 6-9 weeks after opting for hip surgery

This begs the question: What has been A-Rod's worst experience this offseason?

• Divorcing his wife after a reported romance with 50-year-old Madonna (this technically took place during the '08 season, but I'm counting it anyways)
  
• Getting tossed to the scrapheap by a 50-year-old
• Being labeled "A-Fraud" in Joe Torre's book
• Being linked to steroids by Sports Illustrated
• Having to admit to steroid use in a press conference
• Having surgery to repair torn right hip labrum

Ouch. A-Rod has had a worse winter than the Dow Jones. A marriage shattered, a love unrequited, a friendship torn asunder, a reputation shredded, a painful admission, and a serious medical procedure. "Are you sure it's my hip that needs to be repaired, Doc? Because it hurts right here (points to heart). It hurts ... (lip quivering) ... right here (single tear)."

No tears need to be shed when it comes to the Yankees chances, however. Going A-Rod-less for the first month or so may cost them a few games, but it seems like the Damn Yankees can do pretty much whatever they want in April and May and still flip a switch for the stretch run (they were 14-16 and 10-14 on May 1 the last two seasons). In fairness, they did miss the playoffs last year, which was totally sweet, but they won 89 games. And with a $209 million payroll, I wouldn't worry too much about their chances of competing this season.

T.O. released by Cowboys, signs with Bills

The 'Boys were no longer willing to throw the paper at Terrell Owens, but Buffalo was happy to throw some bills his way. For the first time in his career, Owens will play in the AFC.

Owens is a player with big-time talent and an even bigger ego (think: running to the star in the middle of Cowboys Stadium after scoring a touchdown with the 'Niners). If he could just shut his mouth every once in a while and be a team player, he wouldn't bounce around the league like a pinball.

Yes, he still gets the job done on the field, but there's no doubt his attitude has a negative impact on his teammates. Jerry Jones wants to win, and he wants to win bad. There's no way he releases a top five wide receiver from a team that hasn't won a playoff game since 1996 unless his 'tude is more toxic than a Britney Spears single.

How many rings does T.O. have (I'll give you a hint: it's equal to the number of games the Lions won last year)? Granted, that's partly due to Tony Romo's tendency to go into hibernation every winter, and also to the fact that the Eagles were run over by the Tom Brady Train in Super Bowl XXXIX.

But the fact is: chemistry matters in sports, and it REALLY matters in football. A QB has about four seconds to drop back, make his reads and decide whom to throw to. Having a little T.O. voice in the back of your head saying "Throw to me even if I'm not open or I'll chew you out on the sideline or in the media" doesn't help.

Owens is getting up there in age--he's 35 now. It's time for him to wisen up and stop bringing his teams down. He's got so much ability, and it's time for him to take full advantage of it. The Bills are counting on it, especially in an improved AFC East where they'll get no mercy from the Patriots and Dolphins.

Big East tournament tips off with two upsets

If Georgetown had any remaining hope of making the NCAA tournament, it was crushed today with a 64-59 loss to St. John's.

Selection committee: Who wants to be an NIT team?
Georgetown: I do! I do!

In other action, DePaul smacked Cincinnati in the head with a giant bag of "What the f*** just happened?" The Bearcats had some quality wins this year, beating Georgetown twice and taking down both Notre Dame and West Virginia. They were seeded 9th in the Big East tournament.

But even if they had been seeded 90th, they still should have beaten DePaul. Apparently the Blue Demons were just biding their time, going winless in conference play to assure themselves a 16 seed so they could sneak up all cat-like and take someone out before they knew what hit 'em.

DePaul will now take on Providence, which, along with being a college in Rhode Island, is also defined as "God, esp. when conceived as omnisciently directing the universe and the affairs of humankind with wise benevolence." If there is a God, s/he will surely end this charade here and now before DePaul gets any ideas about being a real basketball team. However, if this God has a sense of humor, s/he will surely direct DePaul to a Big East Conference tournament championship, because that would be hilarious. And it would be a downright knee-slapper to see DePaul take on an Oklahoma or North Carolina in the first round of the NCAA tournament.

More on Drugs

So A-Rod was allegedly on the juice, too. I’m shocked, but not “OJ verdict” shocked. The fact is, there were 104 players who tested positive in ’03. I’m not sure how many were tested total, but even if we take all 40 players on each team’s 40-man roster, 40 times 30 is 1,200. That means at least 8 percent of players tested positive for steroids. Regarding steroids in general, we’re pretty sure about Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco, Rafael Palmeiro, Jason Giambi, and maybe a few others. Is it that surprising that A-Rod would be one of them?

Don’t get me wrong, it is saddening. For one thing, the more top players that go down, the less trust there will be among fans. It’s worse for a future would-be Hall of Famer like A-Rod to be on the list of 104 than, say, Daryle Ward.

Second, many fans (myself included) were hoping A-Rod could help save baseball by surpassing Bonds’s 762. If you assume that A-Rod’s legacy will be in tatters when all this is said and done, the next best hope to knock Bonds down to 2^nd is Albert Pujols. He just turned 29, and has 319 home runs. A-Rod had about 360 home runs at the same age. But instead of being perhaps five or six years away from a new—and legitimate—home run king, we’re perhaps 10 years away, and Pujols is no lock to break the 700 barrier. Plus, A-Rod may still surpass Bonds, and MLB could then have a home run king and queen (not to mention three of the other top 11 career home run leaders) who aren’t in the Hall of Fame.

But in the end, I’m with Curt Schilling on this whole thing. Who is it that’s leaking these names out one-by-one? Let’s get all the names out there. It’s 104 names no matter what the names are. Either way, the pieces are going to have to be picked up; might as well pick them all up at once. Baseball has to get past this before it can move forward.

Update: Alex Rodriguez has admitted to using PEDs during a 3-year period with the Rangers. This admission of course doesn't change anything, but I have to give him credit for coming clean about not being clean. After Giambi's "I'm sorry for something, but I can't say what" press conference, McGwire's "I'm not here to talk about the past" Senate hearing, Barry Bonds's indictment for lying to a grand jury, et al, this is refreshing. A-Rod's decision to cheat is just as wrong as everyone else's, but his immediate reaction is a world apart from most everyone else implicated in baseball's steroid situation.