I chose to leave the inner, sappy ramblings concerning my recent life transition to Brazil for personal documents stashed on my portable laptop as no one should experience the darkness that lurks in the depths of my soul.

Ok, I cannot help but turn Poe when reflecting on my journey but for those wondering, I am healthy and vibrant but not eager to expound on my daily activities as being in another country does not guarantee that my story trumps any one else’s in terms of drama.

Ironically, the one subject which I chose to dwell on and now write about concerns matters on a different continent in my native country of the U.S. of A.

Everyday I awake with a mission to first brush my teeth as old habits die hard, and then find the scores from the previous night in the MLB. Plenty of intriguing stories to provide over an hour of reading material, but usually floating on the same wave length with the great one, a.k.a. The Sports Guy, I concur that the Mannywood expose sits atop my sports consciousness.

As Obama and McCain continue dividing the country between red and blue, Manny currently represents the litmus test for how one views sports. Simmons devoted most of his epic article to the devious handling of Manny’s trade requests, orchestrated by the soulless sports agent Scot Boras, who I first grew irate with in the late 90s when Bernie Williams held the Yankees hostage. Simmons paints Manny as aloof and innocent in the situation but without dissecting the New Yorker’s psyche with a penknife I will say that the notion that he symbolizes everything tainted with sports reminds me why Obama will win.

The Senator has flaws and he might plummet the economy into a further abyss but he wisely ran on the platform of change. The people of the United States need to grasp the idea that progress does not equate into destroying history. Manny might not hustle on every play but that is no reason to hate the man. We see laziness in our work environment and the only way to solve such a dilemma is checks and balances. The Red Sox organization complained adamantly about Manny’s lethargy but never suspended the guy.

It may appear that I condone Manny’s lack of effort but anyone who watched me play rugby in college knows I always played in the ‘B’ game, which was an exhibition for those who did not play in the one that counted, after doing it all in the ‘A‘ game. The joy I receive from playing sports forces determination and to quit never seems viable. But when I think of Manny it’s not his insubordination that comes to the forefront, it’s his carefree spirit that transforms him into a dominant figure in the batter’s box.

Fuck Bonds. The guy never won shit. Griffey peaked too early and Pujols needs to stay healthy to match Manny. Incredible numbers with Cleveland before combining with Big Papi to form this generation’s Ruth and Gehrig. It was like Manny played the role of big brother. Papi would deliver with mammoth blasts without requiring Manny’s assistance. But any time Papi slipped, Manny would stroll to the plate and effortlessly pick up where his protégé left off. The two were unstoppable last season and now without much accompaniment, Manny has turned a mediocre Dodgers team into the hottest squad in baseball. With focus and a swing that pushes all the way through the strike zone, the future member of the Hall of Fame could guarantee his place among the immortals if he and former Yankee skipper, Joe Torre, could bring a title to a franchise that had won a sole playoff game over the past 20 years.

Manny’s torrid hitting helped add another year to the Cubs’ century-plus drought. Ryan Dempster, who transitioned from average closer to All-Star starter, set the pace for the series with a poor performance in game one that included seven walks. Also playing a major factor in the sweep, Alfonso Soriano’s second straight October disappearance (2-for-28 over the past two postseasons) stands against his breakout 2001 October when as a rookie he hit a walk-off homer in the ALCS and also knocked a shot that, at the time, seemingly gave the Yankees their fourth straight title in Game Seven against Curt Schilling and Arizona.

As the favorite in the American League, the Angles lost a couple of close games and for the second straight year were eliminated by the BoSox. Once again one of the most prolific hitters of our time, Vladimir Guerrero, did little to help the Halos as the newly acquired Torii Hunter and catcher Mike Napoli were the hitting stars. Boston lost Manny but his replacement, Jason Bay, and a scrappy bunch of youthful regulars that are now postseason vets, e.g. Jacoby Ellsbury and Jon Lester, pushed the defending champs into the ALCS against their newly found rivals from Tampa.

The Rays, who have defined what a turnaround season means and left me unable to articulate what they have accomplished into words, began their feud with Boston in June when Sox outfielder Coco Crisp charged the mound and threw a haymaker at Tampa’s Jamie Shields. The two teams played some exciting games in the second-half of the season with the Rays narrowly holding onto first place.

Finally, the Phils will attempt to spoil the Manny saga as the production from Pat Burrell and Jason Werth adds to a power-studded lineup that capitalizes on their bandbox of a ballpark. Somehow, the Phils have also carved out a decent rotation and reactivated the career of Brad Lidge.

Thought I would jump into MMA and the NFL but the Manny love fest has delayed those topics for another day. Hit me up with any comments, as they are always welcomed.