Yep, it has come to this.

A pal of Manny Ramirez’s considered the coming week and what may follow, how far the Los Angeles Dodgers have fallen this 2010 MLB baseball season, and the club’s opportunity – now that Ramirez is on his feet again – to save the last few million of a lot of wasted dollars.

“Manny’s days in L.A.,” the friend of Manny Ramirez said, “are over.” One way or another. As he once followed teammate Johnny Damon out of Boston, Ramirez will follow Damon to the waiver wire, two Idiots in limbo.

Damon hadn’t dismissed returning to the Red Sox for WWJDD II. And Manny was Waived Man Walking, though Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti hadn’t yet pulled that trigger. It’s coming.

While life with Manny in L.A. was often complicated – the drug suspension, the injuries, the dramatic loss of power, the blind idolatry, the consecutive trips to the National League Championship Series, the wig sales – Colletti’s next decision will not be. Now he tries to turn the last few bricks of Mannywood into something useful.

At 38, Ramirez has nearly half as many trips to the disabled list (three) as he does home runs (eight). The trick will be to keep him on the field long enough to push him through the waivers process (48 hours) and, assuming he is claimed, through trade negotiations (as many as another 48 hours).

Ramirez has full no-trade rights, which adds another layer to…

For some reason, the National League always plays second fiddle to the American League because its counterpart has the Yankees and the Red Sox.

Coming to the 2010 MLB baseball season, teams from the National League will once again have the opportunity to outshine those more popular teams from the American League. Yup, betting on these NL teams won’t be that bad of an idea at all.

So which of these NL teams are worth the buck? What about the Los Angeles Dodgers? For the Dodgers, the contract extension of Joe Torre was a huge lift to their spirits. And with Torre still on board, I can’t see any reason why this team will fall from grace anytime soon.

Torre, who originally figured to retire following the 2009 season, said he had committed to a one-year extension that will take his current deal through 2011. Torre’s agent, Maury Gostfrand, and the Dodgers are working on the financial details.

When Joe Torre originally signed a three-year contract to manage the Dodgers starting in the 2008 season, he only intended on managing two of those years. He structured the deal that way because he didn’t want to feel like a lame-duck manager after just one year in Los Angeles.

But then the Dodgers advanced to the NL Championship Series in 2008 and 2009, prompting Torre to stick around and see what might happen next. Even before seeing the results of the 2010 season, he wants to make sure he’s around for one more year.

Make no mistake, though, Torre will manage in 2011 and then…

We are.

You can almost feel the intensity of the 2009 MLB World Series as the ALCS and the NLCS will decide which two teams will come out to play for the world championship.

In the ALCS, the New York Yankees are looking to return back to the big dance as they go up against the Los Angeles Angels, a team looking to get at least one team from Hollywood in the World Series.

In the NLCS, the Philadelphia Phillies are looking to return to the World Series and defend the world title they won last year after dominating the Tampa Bay Rays in five games. They do battle with the Los Angeles Dodgers, a team looking to give Joe Torre his first world championship ring since moving to Hollywood.

What’ll happen if the Yankees face their old mentor and take on the Dodgers? Will the World Series be settled in Hollywood this year? Can the Philadelphia Phillies win back to back titles and beat whichever team that’ll come out of the American League?

Here’s a look at all four possible matchups and who we think will take it. Unfortunately, we’re not picking the Los Angeles Angels to win ANY matchup. Sorry.

Los Angeles Angels vs. Los Angeles Dodgers in the 2009 MLB World Series

Another cross-town World Series match-up in the making? As everybody knows, this kind of scenario never materialized like the New York Yankees – New York Mets and St. Louis Cardinals – Kansas City Royals matchups they were gunning for before mainly because there still is the ”baseball doesn’t exist west of Kansas” reaction.

And since East Coast fans usually can’t stay awake to…

Are the Dodgers really that good?

Since Manny Ramirez came back from his suspension, the Los Angeles Dodgers have been on a roll this 2009 MLB baseball season.

You read it, the Los Angeles Dodgers look like the team to come out and represent the National League in the World Series. The Dodgers lead the pack in the NL West. However, slugger Manny Ramirez is in a downward spiral and he appears to be bringing the Dodgers down with him.

On their fifth attempt to clinch the National League West, the Dodgers fell 4-3 to the second-place Colorado Rockies as Manny Ramirez struck out in each of his four trips to the plate. The Dodgers may have gotten some sort of momentum since Ramirez came back from the suspension but with Ramirez himself struggling, I’m not sure how long can the rest of the Dodgers keep themselves afloat.

Last year, after acquiring Ramirez, the Dodgers looked like a completely different team. Before trading for him, they were 54-54. In the Dodger blue, Manny hit .396 with 17 homers and 53 RBI in 53 games. Truth be told, they have been led by outfielders not named Manny in Andre Ethier and Matt Kemp, along with first baseman James Loney, and young pitchers like Chad Billingsley and Clayton Kershaw.

It’ll be interesting to see how everything unfolds around the Dodgers.

One team looking to challenge the Dodgers are the Colorado Rockies. Under new manager Jim Tracy, the Rockies appear to be a completely different team. They don’t have any superstar pitchers, but Jason Marquis has 15 wins, Ubaldo Jimenez has 14 along with an ERA of 3.47, and Jorge De La Rosa has 15 in addition to…

If they can, they might just give the guy back to Boston.

The Dodgers’ run for the World Series title in the 2009 MLB baseball season is in question with the huge loss of slugger Manny Ramirez.

The dreadlocked slugger was banished for 50 games when MLB found out that Ramirez had testosterone in his body that was not natural and came from an artificial source. Ramirez said he did not take steroids and was only given medication by a doctor that contained a substance he never taught was banned.

Of course, MLB heard that one before and eventually decided to suspend Manny Ramirez anyway. A person familiar with the details of the suspension said Ramirez used the female fertility drug HCG, or human chorionic gonadotropin.

Ramirez is batting .348 with six home runs and 20 RBIs through the first 27 games of the season. The Los Angeles Dodgers have bolted to a 21-8 record and a 13-0 mark at home that has set the modern major league record for a home winning streak to start a season.

That’s BEFORE everybody found out that Ramirez was taking female fertility drugs illegally.

And now that he’s out, the question would have to be on the Dodgers and if they can survive just long enough to make a run for the title. It’ll be awfully hard to do it without Ramirez but at this point, the Dodgers really don’t have much of a choice.

Ramirez was acquired by Los Angeles from Boston last July 31 and became…

Since Ramirez is suspended for 50 freaking games, there’s a very likely possibility that we won’t be seeing him in Philly.

And while that may have ultimately put LA’s 2009 MLB baseball season down the drain, they’re hoping that they can hold on without Manny just enough for a postseason run. As of this writing, the Los Angeles Dodgers hold the best record in baseball. Of course, with Manny Ramirez suspended for 50, there’s that possibility that some team will eventually knock them off the top.

I guess it is safe to assume that the Dodgers will be in survival mode until Manny Ramirez returns from his suspension. Can the Dodgers hang on? It begins on Tuesday, when they open up a three-game series against the Philadelphia Phillies.

Clayton Kershaw is scheduled to start for the Los Angeles Dodgers on the mound. Kershaw got big outs with runners in scoring position to frustrate the last-place Washington Nationals the last time he started for LA, but it could be a different story against a potent Phillies lineup. Kershaw battled through a 31-pitch first inning, in which he loaded the bases but also struck out the side in his last outing. He was removed after allowing one run in five innings, requiring 99 pitches to get that far.

The Philadelphia Phillies are scheduled to have Chan HO Park for the Dodgers. Park finally put in the pitching performance…

Baseball has already settled in and it’s time to determine where you can put some money on and win big.

One month into the baseball betting marathon that is the 2009 MLB baseball season, is behind us and there have been some surprises thus far. The latest one is of course Manny Ramirez being the latest guy to be linked to banned substances.

With that said, I know most of you won’t be wasting their time (and money) betting on the Dodgers since they’ll have a lot to figure out in the next few weeks with the fallout of the Manny Ramirez issue.

So, which team is the best ”money” team in baseball now? Some of you might say the Boston Red Sox are, while some will go with the Tampa Bay Rays. Well, NONE of them are ”money” teams. But if you’re looking for the best team to bet on, you can’t go wrong with the Toronto Blue Jays.

The Toronto Blue Jays are 20-10 overall with a profitable 11-4 record at home and a healthy 9-6 record on the road. A $100 a game bettor would have a profit of approximately $950 if they wagered on every Jay game this season so far (depending on the lines when they bet on Toronto).

Over / Under bettors can take note, the Jays have posted…

You read it, FIFTY. That’s just crazy.

And the only thing that’ll get a guy suspended that long are banned substances. Guess what, Manny Ramirez just joined the club of drug junkies this 2009 MLB baseball season.

You read it, Manny Ramirez just joined the growing lineup of MLB stars linked to banned substances. Apparently, Ramirez claims he did not take steroids and was just prescribed by a doctor with some kind of medication that contains a banned substance. But then again, we’ve all heard that one before.

And since Ramirez probably knows that his remaining fans, as well as the supporters of the Los Angeles Dodgers, do know better, he’s apologizing for what he calls as, ”this whole situation” anyway.

”It’s a dark day for baseball and certainly for this organization,” Los Angeles Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti told reporters on the field at Dodger Stadium. ”This organization will never condone anything that isn’t clean.”

Yup, the guy probably said it best. However, this guy should’ve already realized that when he got Ramirez from the Boston Red Sox last season, he’s also getting all these fucked-up baggage that tags along with the star.

Tests undertaken by the league showed that Ramirez had testosterone in his body that was not natural and came from an artificial source…

No, you can’t take Jeter.

Who is the better teammate in baseball, Manny Ramirez or Alex Rodriguez? Let’s take a look at the highlights of these players so to know who will serve as the better teammate this 2009 MLB baseball season.

First up we have Manny Ramirez, who recently signed a two-year deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers worth $45 million. Ramirez needed no introduction after leading the Dodgers to the 2008 National League West title by hitting .396 with 17 homers and 53 RBIs in 53 regular-season games. In the playoffs, he batted .520 with four homers, 10 RBIs, nine runs and 11 walks in eight games.

The Los Angeles Dodgers decided to make a big fuss over his arrival and Ramirez didn’t disappoint with a performance that would have played well in a Hollywood comedy club. The Dodgers also ended up with one of baseball’s most feared sluggers, a .314 career hitter with 527 home runs, 17th on the all-time list.

Next, we have Alex Rodriquez. Although he has been in hot seat for the past months with his issues on taking steroids, he is still a force to be reckon with in baseball. Looking at his career highlights, he established career-highs with 143 runs and 156 RBI while hitting .314 (183-for-583) with 54HR and 24SB in 158 games with the Yankees in 2007 (154 starts at third base, four starts at designated hitter).

The New York Yankees third baseman led the Majors in…

In case you don’t know it yet, baseball is finally here.

That’s right, the brand new 2009 MLB baseball season is finally here. Isn’t that something?

Yes, amidst the controversy involving Alex Rodriguez and steroids, the situation between Manny Ramirez, the Dodgers and the Red Sox, and basically everything else that kept fans talking about baseball, the season is here and BetUS.com is right in the thick of it.

With the start of the brand new MLB regular season, baseball fans across the country are already speculating as to how their teams will perform. Will they win it all this year? How long until our coach gets fired? Will our clean-up hitter outperform the rest?

With this being the case, the largest most successful sportsbook on the web, (that’s according to them anyway…) BetUS.com, posted early season predictions on all things MLB to give fans some resemblance of what to expect.

”Despite the off-season turmoil that followed some of the game’s biggest stars, interest in America’s pastime is still alive and well,” stated BetUS.com spokesman Reed Richards.

”Fans are flooding our site for up to the minute predictions and prognostications. We’ve got everything from early World Series odds, to which coach will be fired first!”

Want to see these 2009 MLB baseball season betting odds they’re…