It’s  independence day! No, not that independence day, that ho hum holiday is tomorrow, but the fireworks start tonight.  Now I know you Angels fans are thinking, “there’s fireworks every Friday night, that’s why I go to the games!” As much as I love fireworks after an 11-2 loss to Kansas City, that is not what I am referring to either.  Today, July 3, 2009 is Manny Independence Day.

This could not have come fast enough, as the Dodgers need him badly.  They have been floundering since he was sent to timeout by the big, bad, and all of a sudden self-righteous MLB…..What’s that you say?  LA has the best record in baseball?? Whoops, that’s what I get for starting this story in May.  Though the Blue Crew hasn’t missed a beat without #99, you wouldn’t know it from talking to Dodgers fans or listening to any L.A. broadcast.  They have been counting down the seconds.  During recent rehab games in the Inland Empire, Manny drew so many people to the ballpark you would have thought they were showing a UFC fight on the big screen.

Now that Ramirez’s reunion tour in the minors has ended, all the talk this week in Southern California is about the glorious return of the big juiced up slugger, and ALL of the questions that come with it.  Will the fans take him back? Should he be banned from the Hall of Fame? Will Manny be any good without the ‘roids? Will he be open, honest, and contrite? Will there be wigs for sale? Will little leaguers start taking steroids now?  And why do we park in a driveway, and drive on a parkway?

While I can’t help you with that last one, I will do my best to shed some light on the others.  Let’s see…yes, no, probably, probably not, or course, and of course not.  I think that just about clears things up.

But seriously, as far as the fans are concerned, Manny seems to have been given a pass by the baseball world.  A pass that was not given to Bonds, Clemens, or A-Rod.  I’m not sure if that is a tribute to Ramirez and his dynamic persona, or a sign that we, as baseball fans, just don’t give a damn anymore about this steroids story.  It is unknown at this point how Manny will be received around the country, but there is no doubt he will be greeted as a hero at Chavez Ravine.  Starting tonight, the Dodgers’ next nine games are on the road, where Ramirez will receive his harshest criticism before returning to LA.  Once back in La Ciudad, the only way Manny will be booed is if he goes O-for a home stand.

Now, I have heard and read much about why Dodgers fans are letting him off the hook.  The fans have been bashed all over the radio waves, internet, and print media, called out for everything from lack of respect for the game to blind ignorance.  While I am not here to defend Ramirez or his actions, Dodgers fans should not be chastised for welcoming him back.  After all, this is Major League Baseball’s mess, why should we be punished for trying to enjoy ourselves as the Dodgers make a run to the World Series?  Might I remind you that until Manny showed up, Los Angeles had won only one playoff game and zero playoff series since winning it all in 1988.  L.A. is not Boston, it is not Chicago, and it sure as hell is not Cleveland.  We don’t have self loathing fans, who believe in curses, and will wait all of our lives if it means one glorious year in the sun.  In L.A. we want to know where the party is, and since Man Ram showed up last summer, the party has been at Dodger Stadium.

There is no telling whether Ramirez will miss his shot at the Hall of Fame as a result of getting busted this season.  Sadly, this argument will never be resolved for many players because of the suspicion that surrounds any Major Leaguer during the “steroid era.”  The strength of the Players Union and the weakness of Bud Selig and Major League baseball is the prime reason that we are just now attempting to clean up the sport.  The responsibility for all of this should be laid at the doorstep of the commissioner and his league.  It should not be a cross to bear for the players or the fans.

It would be great if Manny would come out and tell us exactly how long he has been using.  His entire career?  Just this season?  Who knows?  The job will be solely his to prove to all of us that he can perform without enhancers, because if he struggles in the least, everyone will point to the fact that his is no longer cheating.  Beyond that, I don’t think there is anything left for him to do but strap up his boots and go to work everyday.

But what about the kids?  Always the argument that comes last, and appears impossible to oppose.  Well, it isn’t, in fact it is a silly, idealist stance that holds no water in the real world.  Sure, no one wants their kids to take steroids, or smoke crack, or shoot heroin for that matter.  And who’s job is it to make sure they don’t? That responsibility lies with parents, coaches and teachers.  That’s their job, and if they don’t do it, they have only themselves to blame.  I would not have wanted Manny Ramirez to raise my kids even before it came out that he was using.  We can shelter our kids as much as we want, but one day they will grow up to be adults and have to live in the real world.  A world where Santa Claus does not exist, and sometimes cheaters do prosper.  For those who disagree, lets just hope your son or daughter doesn’t want to be a politician, or a loan officer, or a stock broker, or a defense attorney, or……….

I rest my case.

Go Dodgers!

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Matt Venuto was forced into the writing business when those close to him held an intervention and demanded that he find an outlet for his endless opinions and ranting, because, frankly, they were tired of listening to him. Matt is a USC alumnus and majored in psychology in an attempt to figure out why everyone around him was nuts.  He failed in his endeavor.  Like Hootie and the Blowfish, the Dolphins make him cry and he doesn’t understand why more people don’t find Kevin Garnett extremely annoying.  Calm down Kevin, please.

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