Ramirez apologizes on night of return to Dodgers

Baseball Betting Lines

07/03/2009 - San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Los Angeles Dodgers left fielder Manny Ramirez spoke to the media Friday, prior to making his scheduled return to the majors following his 50-game suspension.

Ramirez is expected to be in the starting lineup when the first-place Dodgers play against the San Diego Padres.

Although Ramirez apologized for violating baseball's drug policy, he didn't delve into the details surrounding his suspension, but the 12-time All-Star did say he was sorry to the fans and his teammates.

He was suspended for reportedly taking the banned substance human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG), a female fertility drug that can also be used as an antidote to reduce testosterone levels at the end of a cycle of steroid treatments.

"I missed the game that I love, I miss being around the guys," said Ramirez, who donned sunglasses for the news conference. "It is what it is, but I'm here, I feel great and I'm ready to play.

"I want to say I'm sorry to the fans, to my teammates that they're always there for me. I want to thank Frank McCourt (Dodgers owner) for his support and I'm here. I'm excited. I can't wait to get onto the field."

The Dodgers went 29-21 while Ramirez sat due to a positive test for performance-enhancing drugs. He'll now join a team that is 50-29 this season and holding a 7 1/2 game lead on San Francisco for first place in the National League West.

The 37-year-old Ramirez was hitting .348 with six homers and 20 RBI prior to his suspension on May 7.

Juan Pierre started all 50 games for the Dodgers in left field since the suspension started and hit .318 with 14 doubles, 21 RBI, 31 runs and 21 steals in those games.

"I know it's going to take time for me to get my rhythm, to get my timing" said Ramirez. "That's what I'm here for and I'm just going to go day-by-day."

Dodgers manager Joe Torre doesn't believe there will be an internal rift from the players with Ramirez returning.

"I think Manny coming on board is certainly going to lessen the load on some of these kids," said Torre. "I don't think it's going to be a chemistry problem. I'd be very surprised if that's going to be the case."

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Big 12 Conference betting odds

Work left to do: Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Kansas State

Texas joins Texas A&M and Kansas as locks after getting league win No. 11. Texas Tech greatly helped its own hopes and crippled OK State's with the two-point win Saturday. Is K-State the last reasonable hopeful? Could be an elimination match in Stillwater on Tuesday, at least for the Cowboys.

Work left to do:

Texas Tech [18-11 (7-7), RPI: 44, SOS: 12] A critical two-point win over OK State leaves the Red Raiders with Baylor and at Iowa State left. Get both and the Red Raiders likely are good to go. Get one and there could be some interesting comparisons with a K-State team that could finish two or three games "ahead" of them in the standings but doesn't have any of the quality wins Texas Tech has. Not a lot in nonconference play (against Arkansas in Little Rock being the best win, by far) to lean on.

Oklahoma State [18-9 (5-8), RPI: 50, SOS: 35] Still without a road win, the Cowboys now need to win two on the road just to get to .500 in conference play. It's hard to recall a team (OK, other than Clemson) falling so precipitously from lock status to almost certainly out of the NCAAs at this point. There are wins to be had in the last three, including a very big home game against K-State on Tuesday, but this team is reeling. Can you tell the pressure to win is getting to them with the way the final possession played out at Texas Tech? There are some good nonconference performances to lean on, specifically beating Missouri State and Syracuse on neutral floors and Pitt in OK City, but if the Pokes don't right this very, very soon, that won't be enough.

Kansas State [20-9 (9-5), RPI: 56, SOS: 96] It pays to be in the Big 12 North. The nine league wins are Colorado (twice), Missouri (twice), Iowa State (twice), Baylor, Nebraska and (a good one against) Texas. That helps explain the middling computer profile. The win over USC is nice, but the nonconference leaves a lot to be desired. The game at OK State in Stillwater on Tuesday is huge, as it could KO the Cowboys and leave K-State with a home date against Oklahoma with which to work.