Los Angeles, CA - When Manny Ramirez  returned to the Dodgers after missing 50 games due to a drug suspension, he shared with his teammates that he had made the intensely personal decision to commit to a carbon neutral lifestyle. As part of that commitment, Ramirez announced he would bike to Dodger Stadium from his Holmby Hills condo, and back, a total of 18 miles, for the team's remaining homes games.

 

Many are now asking is it any wonder that Ramirez’s second half performance, including a .167 batting average in his last 10 games and no homers in 49 at bats, tanked?

“The man's exhausted,” said a source who required anonymity in exchange for speaking about the Dodger slugger. 

 

Ramirez denied the conjecture. “I like to pedal,” explained Ramirez. “It makes me happy.”

 

“There are a lot of canyons in LA," said the Dodger source. "And let’s face it; this is not a well conditioned athlete.”

 

“He's a fruitcake," said catcher Russell Martin, one of the few Dodgers who would speak on the record. "The Rockies have probably been paying for his inner tubes. It almost worked. And now we're screwed because he's too tired to hit because he likes to ride his bike. It's nuts.”

The Dodgers nearly blew a huge lead to the Colorado Rockies in late September. They face the Cardinals in the NL Division Series beginning Wednesday. 

"St. Louis is a good biking city," commented Ramirez. "No hills."

 

After his eco-conversion, Ramirez lobbied his fellow Dodgers to embrace green principles. "Joe Torre told me he would use biofuel to power his computer,” said Ramirez proudly. “And Randy Wolf is going to install solar panels over his locker.

 

“I asked (Dodger owner Frank) McCourt to change the team color. Dodger Green has a real ring to it. He said he’d probably do it. He drives a Prius."