As news of the 50-game suspension of Manny Ramirez for violating Major League
Baseball's drug policy spread throughout big-league clubhouses, reaction among
peers was quick, ranging from accusatory to skeptical to even indifferent.

In Kansas City, Mark Teahen, the Royals' player representative, called
"definitely disappointing" the suspension of "one of the faces of the game."

"Shocked," Teahen said, summarizing his reaction. "It's tough to keep hearing
that the best players in the game are not following the rules of the game. I
don't know when the test was taken or anything but it definitely casts a cloud
over [the Dodgers'] start and Ramirez's career.

"Even as a player, I'm a fan of the game," Teahen added, "and it's definitely
not fun to see the game go through something like this, where some of the top
players are coming out as cheaters, in a way."

On the other side of Missouri, in St. Louis, slugger Albert Pujols had a
different perspective. "I don't want to talk about what happened with Manny," he
said. "This is the St. Louis Cardinals, not the Dodgers."

In the view of Colorado manager Clint Hurdle, the involvement of Ramirez negates
any progress the sport had made in trying to distance itself from the use of
steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs.

"Any distance we might have picked up, we lost as an industry. That's the sad
part of it," Hurdle said. "For whatever reasons there are individuals that
aren't getting it.

"So many guys who are clean continue to get thrown under a black cloud by those
who are involved. We're in an industry where people are still looking for other
means to heighten their game."

Echoing that theme, Arizona manager Bob Melvin said, "This obviously keeps [the
subject] current and keeps it in vogue. That's what bothers me the most."

On how the long-term loss of one of the Dodgers' key players alters the dynamic
in the National League West, Hurdle said, "Obviously he's a main cog and he's
not going to be in play for a while. We'll see how that ballclub handles that
adversity. Can they win without him? I'm sure they feel confident that they can.
They're a different team without him in the lineup."

"[H]im being out 50 games is huge for the Dodgers lineup," said Rockies
shortstop Troy Tulowitzki. "It takes the best player in the division out for 50
games. That gives us a little window of opportunity, so hopefully we can take
advantage of it."

The D-backs' Conor Jackson put the 50-game absence of Martinez more bluntly:
"That's a third of a season, that's enough to win or lose a pennant."

Dodgers coach Larry Bowa conceded Ramirez's suspension will force "some of our
young kids to grow up now."

"We don't have Manny for 50 games," Bowa said, "so they're going to have to go
out there and play. ... It's going to be a challenge for them."

Rangers outfielder Marlon Byrd sensed the weight of someone with Ramirez's
visibility having to be disciplined.

"It doesn't help the baseball world, I know that," Byrd said. "We need our
superstars on the field. This is not going to be good for us."

Texas' Michael Young voiced concern about the unspecified aspects of Ramirez's
case.

"From what I understand, he's saying it was a false positive test for a
medication. I'm going to go on that," Young said. "I don't know all the facts or
what's been released but it looks like it's similar to the J.C. Romero deal [the
Philadelphia reliever who was suspended for 50 games on Jan. 5 for taking banned
medication], which a lot of players think is unfair.

"A lot of players are concerned about false positive tests and they are
concerned about what tests positive and what doesn't. It used to be you could go
to GNC or the vitamin store and be fine. Obviously that's not the case anymore"

On the same subject, Royals pitcher Jamey Wright said, "You're sitting there and
looking at a Diet Coke and making sure that thing doesn't have stuff in it. With
what's happened over the last few years, it's your responsibility to make sure
that what you're putting in your body, you're not at risk. Romero did that and
it came up with something in it."

However, the Mariners' Russell Branyan couldn't absolve Ramirez based on his
explanation that his suspension was triggered by medication prescribed by a
physician.

"I think they're pretty clear about it," Branyan said of MLB's guidelines on
banned substances. "We get the list every year."

Branyan added, "At this point, we don't even know what he tested positive for.
Obviously, he did something wrong and he's taking responsibility for it. It's
unfortunate for his team and the Dodgers organization."

Branyan's teammate, Mike Sweeney, echoed Pujols, saying, "I'm not an L.A.
Dodger, and I don't really think about it. It's just a sad day for baseball."

"The guy's been a great hitter for a long time. You don't really expect it and
I'm surprised," said Kansas City pitcher Kyle Davies. "It's really shocking."

D-backs veteran Tony Clark called the news "disheartening."

"Our game has been run through the mud with a number of difficult accusations
and actual situations such that when you have someone like Manny finding himself
in a situation like this, it's disheartening," Clark said. "Regardless of the
situation, regardless of what the supplement or substance may be, simply having
him in this situation is difficult on the game."

"It's definitely going to put a damper on baseball. I think most of us just kind
of want this to go away," said Arizona's Jackson. "Obviously I think we've made
strides, but this just creates setbacks for us."

Source: Tom Singer / MLB.com