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Jayson Stark over at ESPN.com wrote an excellent article on the on-again, off-again nature of Manny Ramirez this season and the dangerous precedent a $100M contract would set within MLB.

Here is a snippet:

Life sure is beautiful these days on Planet Manny. Uhhh, a little too beautiful.

Hey, we couldn’t be happier for those Los Angeles Dodgers, who are selling about 30,000 tickets a day now that they’ve moved their home games to Planet Manny. But we’d like to ask one little question of all those people in L.A. who are showering their man Manny Ramirez with so much love:

What the heck are you cheering for?

For a man who decided his personal net worth was more important than an entire franchise and all the people who played with him, covered for him, depended on him?

Sheez. How sad is that?

“It really bothers me,” one GM said this week of the Manny-mania lovefest that has unfolded in L.A. “What he did in Boston was criminal. Now he goes there, and everything’s OK? No, sir. It doesn’t change the fact that how he got there was criminal.”

Read the entire article HERE.

Watching the Phillies complete the series sweep against the Dodgers last night (nationally televised, no less) I did a double-take. Sure, I knew Manny Ramirez hadn’t delivered an RBI for the Dodgers in the previous six outings and that Dodger hitting was in a slump overall, but I really believed that they were all trying. And then…I saw a shot hit to the left field corner and Manny Ramirez jogging…yes JOGGING to go get it.

Not only have the Dodgers slid back into pre-Manny form, it appears that Manny has also slid back into pre-Dodgers form.

Even Torre commented on the phenomenon, calling Ramirez “tired”.

Now, all of the Dodgers woes can’t be placed at the feet of Manny Ramirez. Nor can Manny take credit for all of L.A.’s success since his arrival. However, Manny does seem to be a pretty reliable barometer of the team’s current and future performance. That barometer is currently pointing toward failure as the Dodgers approach a crucial series in Arizona against the first-place NL West D-backs.

Not all is lost, however. Basides the Diamondbacks, the Dodgers won’t play an above-.500 team. Perhaps the less-mediocre team will carry the day. The Dodgers are only 65-55 with 31 games left after all

All,

Many apologies for the lack of posts - we’ve had some technical glitches as of late, mostly caused by some serious spamming of the site and the comments feature by some unscrupulous folks that are most decidely NOT Dodger fans. We’ve rectified the situation and now return you to your regularly scheduled NL West Pennant Race

Ever since I read Dylan Hernandez’s article on the return of Greg Maddux in the LA Times, I just haven’t been able to quite get the theme song to “Welcome Back Kotter” out of my head (twice in one season, no less!). Tell me that this doesn’t ring true:

Welcome back,
Your dreams were your ticket out.
Welcome back,
To that same old place that you laughed about.
Well the names have all changed since you hung around,
But those dreams have remained and they’re turned around.
Who’d have thought they’d lead ya (Who’d have thought they’d lead ya)
Here where we need ya (Here where we need ya)
Yeah we tease him a lot cause we’ve hot him on the spot, welcome back,
Welcome back, welcome back, welcome back.

Seriously though, Maddux is a stud. If the Padres crappy offense could have just scored some runs, the guy would have a MUCH better record than the 6-9 record he’s currently been sporting, along with that 3.99 ERA (which was a lot lower before he was recently hammered by the Rockies and Twins). No word yet on who the Dodgers gave up to get Maddux, but you’ve got to believe that he’s psyched to be coming back to LA where the newly turbo-charged Dodgers offense is waiting.

Welcome back, welcome back, welcome back…

Dodger manager Joe Torre indicated Saturday that pitcher Brad Penny was likely out for the remainder of the season, according to published reports.

“I can’t think Penny is going to come back,” said the Dodgers manager. “It’s nothing anybody has said. It’s off what happened this year. Coming off the DL, it’s been a slow process. He had only one rehab start, but it just seems it doesn’t feel right to him.”

A buildup of scar tissue that was spotted during a recent MRI. During his rehab, Penny has not returned to original form and was recently shelled for three home runs (six runs in total) over three innings. Definitely not the Brad Penny we remember from earlier in the season.