Ramirez will be watched and criticized the second he arrives at the stadium the day he resumes play. But part of the impact will begin before he returns on the field. Do not be surprised if you see or hear of him frequently in the clubhouse, tutoring, guiding, and showing something that is something more than just "Manny being Manny." The fun will really begin on the day that Ramirez steps back in the batters box.
Ramirez will not only match his numbers from the second half of last year, but possibly surpass them. In doing so the Dodgers lead by who else? Joe Torre, will march into the postseason bringing a roster that has young studs, mixed with seasoned leadership, with a chip on their shoulders not unlike that of the old Boys of Summer.
While I can't, nor want to predict who the opponent of the Los Angeles Dodgers will be in the Fall Classic, it should make to be one of the great stories of the year. The Dodgers fate in the seven game series will determine how long the story will be remembered.
If it goes like Dodgers fans hope, it will not only capture the imaginations of the young and old, but possibly make Ramirez the face of not only the organization, but the "begging of the end" of the steroid era.
People are waiting for the game's next big moment, the next great romantic story, the return of the magic that makes baseball special. And who better to give it to them, than the team that was less than a team, and more like a family. The team that honors the same players that donned the Dodgers unifrom nearly 60 years ago. The team that found a story book ending against the great foe of the time, the Yankees, the "good guys", the Boys of Summer.
It could not only be marked as an end of an era, but the beginning of a new one. The era that has the potential to become the present days Dynasty—the Dynasty of the Los Angeles Dodgers.
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