It hasn't been the greatest week for Cubs manager Lou Piniella. Not only is he feeling the heat of the Chicago media with the Cubs scuffling, but he's also gotten into an argument with Milton Bradley in which he called his right fielder a "piece of [expletive]." Regardless of whether the exchange should have ever left the clubhouse or not, it's not exactly the type of thing you want the world to know about.
All of this was done after a recent poll by Sports Illustrated in which Major League players were asked anonymously which manager in baseball they would least like to play for, and which one they'd most like to play for. Guess which one Sweet Lou emerged "victorious" in.
The Mariners are still hanging around in the AL West, though, so it's not exactly a sure thing they'd be willing to part with Washburn. He does make quite the hefty salary, but his contract is up at the conclusion of this season, so moving him wouldn't really save the Mariners much money.
Starting Five is our wrapup of the previous day's baseball action, with a quick nod to what is ahead.
You Oughta Know ... That Joe Torre can manage a little bit. Torre, who for a great part of his managing career was known as a loser, got his 2,195th managerial win Thursday night to pass Sparky Anderson and move into fifth on the all-time list.
Incredibly, Torre has taken his team to the postseason in 13 consecutive seasons, and given the Dodgers' ever-expanding lead in the NL West, he's likely to make it 14 in 2009. Even with the loss of Manny Ramirez, Los Angeles is 13-4-5 in 22 series this season, including taking two out of three from Oakland this week.
ARLINGTON, Texas -- At the start of this three-game series, there was a thought this would have been a good test for the up and coming Rangers, who lead the AL West.
It turned out to be a nice test -- and confirmation -- for the Dodgers, who own the best record in the game.
After three humid days and nights at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, Los Angeles took two of three games here and will head back to Southern California happy.
ARLINGTON, Texas -- It was something Dodgers fans rarely saw from Andruw Jones last year: a home run.
The Dodgers fans in attendance during Saturday night's Rangers-Dodgers game booed Jones during four trips to the plate. The Rangers fans cheered Jones when he hit a tying home run to right field in the sixth inning.
Though the Dodgers won, 3-1, it was Jones getting a little revenge on the Dodgers for giving up on him last year. Jones is still upset with Dodgers owner Frank McCourt for letting him out of his contract last year.
ARLINGTON, Texas -- After a three-hour game, Joe Torre sat behind his desk in the visiting managers' office at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington either sending a message or just providing answers.
Following the Dodgers' 6-0 loss to the Rangers on a humid Friday night, Torre said his club was pressing.
The Dodgers, with baseball's best record, have lost three of their last four games. They are second in the National League with 312 runs scored, yet have scored only nine runs the last four games.
And the Dodgers failed to produce against Rangers starter Vicente Padilla, who they chased after just five innings and 108 pitches.
Manny Ramirez is many things, but being good with words is not one of them.
On Tuesday night, Manny made a surprise visit to his Dodgers teammates before their game against the Padres, stopping by the home clubhouse for the first time since his 50-game ban was handed down.
That seems innocent enough; Manny's just lending his support. But when he finally opened his mouth to speak to reporters about the suspension, that's when things took a turn for the awkward.
The most inane drug-related rule in my sportswriting life? Back in the old, wacky Continental Basketball Association, naturally. Upon walking through a hallway of weed fumes at the Holiday Inn in Bangor, Maine, where I was doing a feature on a traveling minor-league team obviously participating in cannabis exploration, I checked out my trusty CBA handbook. It confirmed that players were forbidden to use recreational drugs, all right.
On the "day of a game."
Otherwise, smoke and snort away.
Now, years later, I've found a more absurd rule. According to baseball's drug agreement, "A player shall be deemed to have been eligible to play in the All-Star Game if he was elected or selected to play; the commissioner's office shall not exclude a player from eligibility for election or selection because he is suspended under the program." Meaning, Manny Ramirez -- villain of the Scammywood steroids suspension that continues to rock the sport -- is eligible to play in the All-Star Game next month if enough fans vote for his inclusion in the National League starting lineup.
MIAMI – Manny Ramirez faced the music Friday. It had to sound like Muzak to his poor, beleaguered soul.
You know Muzak, the soothing soundtrack you hear in elevators, malls and dentist offices. Ramirez saw teammates for the first time since he was busted last week for using banned substances.
The meeting was held in a conference room at the team hotel. From the sound of things, they should have just piled all the players, coaches and Ramirez into an elevator and let them have a group hug.
What, did somebody die? There are too many grave problems in this world for Manny Ramirez to sequester his dreadlocked soul in solitary confinement. He prefers to hide this week, a full seven days after word surfaced of his self-inflicted steroid shame, rather than apologize in person to his Los Angeles Dodgers teammates as the club's mortified owner has demanded.
"He's really beaten up over this. He's embarrassed," manager Joe Torre said. "I think it's going to take him time to clear his head. We want to see him as a team. The players are here, and they're supporting him. But right now, he's not ready for it."
It hasn't been the greatest week for Cubs manager Lou Piniella. Not only is he feeling the heat of the Chicago media with the Cubs scuffling, but he's also gotten into an argument with Milton Bradley in which he called his right fielder a "piece of [expletive]." Regardless of whether the exchange should have ever left the clubhouse or not, it's not exactly the type of thing you want the world to know about.
As 
Starting Five
ARLINGTON, Texas -- At the start of this three-game series, there was a thought this would have been a good test for the up and coming Rangers, who lead the AL West.
ARLINGTON, Texas -- It was something Dodgers fans rarely saw from 
ARLINGTON, Texas -- After a three-hour game, 
The most inane drug-related rule in my sportswriting life? Back in the old, wacky Continental Basketball Association, naturally. Upon walking through a hallway of weed fumes at the Holiday Inn in Bangor, Maine, where I was doing a feature on a traveling minor-league team obviously participating in cannabis exploration, I checked out my trusty CBA handbook. It confirmed that players were forbidden to use recreational drugs, all right.
What, did somebody die? There are too many grave problems in this world for 
