In case you haven't already heard, Dodgers RBI machine Manny Ramirez returns from his 50 game maternity leave, errr, suspension for violating MLB's drug policy, tonight in San Diego against the Padres.
It should be interesting to watch tonight for two reasons, the first of which being how Manny will perform on the field, and how he in turn will affect the Dodger lineup, which, ohbytheway, played pretty darn well in his abscence. True, he's had a few Minor League at bats in recent days (which is ridiculous that he could be allowed to rehab before his suspension is up, but that's a whole other issue), but who knows how many Major League plate appearances, if any, he'll need before returning to form.
The real question though, of course, is more of the human interest variety. After all, Colleen Dominguez isn't hanging around PetCo today to report Manny's box score. But how will everyone around him, including teammates, react to his return? You would think that as much promise as L.A.'s young sluggers, such as Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier, have shown without Manny in the lineup, they'd be thrilled to have his bat back protecting them, but who knows, all of the media attention could distract an impressionable young clubhouse from their ultimate goal, at least in the short term. And then of course, you have the fans. Remember, this group of angry San Diegans (San Diegoins? San Diegoites?), is the same fan base who trashed Barry Bonds every chance they could get, including throwing faux syringes on the field, so it could get rowdy this weekend.
So, will Manny be as much of a force in the Dodger lineup as he was after last year's trade deadline deal with Boston? Will San Diego residents take a break from surfing and fish tacos to give Manny the business? Will Bill Plaschke's head actually explode? Only time will tell, but if you ask me, the answers are yes, kind of, and maybe. Stay tuned...
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