ESPN -  Manny Ramirez walked away from baseball on Friday, abruptly ending the mercurial career of one of the most talented — and tainted — hitters to ever play the game.  The slumping Tampa Bay Rays slugger tested positive for a performance-enhancing drug during spring training, sources told ESPN.com, and informed Major League Baseball that he would retire rather than face a 100-game suspension.  “I’m at ease,” Ramirez told ESPNdeportes.com via phone from his home in Miami. “God knows what’s best [for me]. I’m now an officially retired baseball player. I’ll be going away on a trip to Spain with my old man.”  Ramirez served a 50-game suspension for violating the drug policy in 2009 while he was with the Los Angeles Dodgers, and second-time offenders get double that penalty.  “We were obviously surprised when we found out about it today and hurt by what transpired,” said Rays vice president Andrew Friedman, who signed Ramirez to a $2 million, one-year contract in the offseason. “We were cautiously optimistic that he would be able to be a force for us.”  Had Ramirez accepted his suspension, he would have become the first player to be suspended twice for a performance-enhancing drug violation since the program went into effect in 2005. The only previous player to be punished twice for any type of drug-related violation was infielder Neifi Perez, who served two suspensions in 2007 for positive amphetamine tests.  After he was informed of this violation, he notified the commissioner’s office that rather than appeal or serve another suspension, he was simply announcing his retirement.  By retiring, he avoided having MLB formally announce that he’d violated the Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program. Instead, MLB issued a release stating only that it had informed Ramirez of “an issue” under that program, and he had chosen to retire.  “Major League Baseball recently notified Manny Ramirez of an issue under Major League Baseball’s Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program,” the statement said. “Ramirez has informed MLB that he is retiring as an active player. If Ramirez seeks reinstatement in the future, the process under the Drug Program will be completed.”  MLB said it would have no further comment.

Alright, so first off, I hope no one is shocked by this news.  Honestly, Red Sox fan or not, it’s no surprise that Manny was using performance enhancers most of his career.  But his entire tenure with the Sox, he was embraced as a fan favorite.  And in Boston, if you’re a fan favorite, you’re set for life unless you defect to the enemy.  Manny was a rock star, and his raw hitting ability won him millions of fans.  We put up with his jogging down the line on ground balls, making terrible plays in the outfield and being an all-around jackass at times.  We dismissed it by saying it was just Manny being Manny.  For that, we won 2 World Series and in return we all collectively looked away at the huge, jacked, elephant in the room.  Manny was using, almost everyone had to know it.  You really think Theo didn’t take all of that into account when he dealt him off to LA?  Soon after that he gets hit with his first suspension.  Then he gets a rebound contract in Tampa but got caught with PEDs.  But you gotta sorta respect the man for just bowing out now.  If I got caught a second time for performance enhancers, there’s no denying it at that point.  You’re done.  Fans will hate you, your numbers would always be questioned, the media will tear you apart.  Why serve the suspension and come back to packs of rabid fans and reporters?  Fuck that.  Manny ain’t about that shit.  Too much of a hassle.  Instead, he pisses dirty in a cup, puts his retirement papers in and makes plans for a fishing trip with his father.  It’s kind of fitting in a way.  Manny being Manny I guess.

PS- I think I have a hunch who was hooking Manny up with the rhoids…

Just saying…