Tipsheet is glad to have Manny Ramirez back in uniform, making Our National Pastime a lot more interesting. That he plays for a big-market team like the Dodgers makes it all the better.

He will be constant source of content for this blog. He does lots of odd things and he makes a big impression on those around him. For instance . . .

Chatting it up with Esquire, Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon had this to say about the ManRam:

“You have somebody like him, you know at any point in the ballgame, he can dictate the outcome of the game. And for him not to be on the same page as the rest of the team was a killer, man! It just takes one guy to bring an entire team down, and that’s exactly what was happening.

“Once we saw that, we weren’t afraid to get rid of him. It’s like cancer. That’s what he was. Cancer. He had to go. It sucked, but that was the only scenario that was going to work. That was it for us. And after, you could feel it in the air in the clubhouse. We got Jason Bay — Johnny Ballgame, plays the game right, plays through broken knees, runs out every ground ball — and it was like a breath of fresh air, man! Awesome! No question.”

The ManRam shrugged off those barbs.

“That’s fine, that’s fine,” Ramirez said, according to the Associated Press. “I’ve already moved on with my life. Like I said, I wish everybody the best. I’m in LA now.

“I’m just focusing (on) playing here,” he said. “I don’t got no control over what people say or what I did in the past or whatever. I moved on already. I’m in LA. It is what it is.”

THE SEAMY UNDERSIDE OF MARCH MADNESS

STATE-OF-THE-ART NCAA COVERAGE

Sometimes you just have to work around the rules.

MYSTERIES OF THE UNIVERSE

Questions to ponder while wondering where the Jayhawks and Sooners ran off to:

• With the Big 12 Tournament up for grabs, will Mizzou exploit this opportunity to improve their NCAA Tournament seed?
• Should the Rams start scoring J.T. Tiller as a defensive back? Wouldn’t he be a terrific ball-hawking safety?
• Do you get the idea that Tommie Liddell just wanted to get his college career over with?
• Wouldn’t Pedro Martinez be a perfect fit for the Dodgers and Joe Torre?If Skip Schumaker can’t handle second base for the Cards, who will lead off?

QUIPS ‘R US

Here is what some of America’s leading sports pundits have been writing:

Jerry Sullivan, Buffalo News, after the Bills signed Terrell Owens: “Maybe it’ll blow up in the Bills’ faces and they’ll be the laughingstock of the league. Oh, wait a minute. They already were the joke of the NFL. So what the heck. At least in the short term, signing T.O. makes the Bills relevant again.”

Scott Ostler, San Francisco Chronicle: “Santonio Holmes went to trial on a minor drug charges. The judge told him, ‘I want to commend you for donating your receiver gloves to charity. It shows you have a strong character.’ Holmes was sentenced to community service - watching the judge mow Santonio’s lawn.”

Greg Cote, Miami Herald: “The University of Florida is seeking permission from the state to allow certain alumni to be buried on campus. Cannot confirm that the first alumni to be buried will be those who fail to meet donation pledges.”

Mark Kriegel, FoxSports.com: “Barry Zito. Jason Schmidt. Andruw Jones. Compared to A-Rod’s spin doctors, they’re all underpaid.”

Dwight Perry, Seattle Times: “Kellogg’s, which deep-sixed Michael Phelps as a cereal endorser for those infamous pot-pipe party pictures, has donated thousands of the commemorative boxes to the San Francisco Food Bank, and memorabilia dealers say the cover image could become a collector’s item. No, not for Phelps — for Tony the Tiger with his eyes half shut.”

MEGAPHONE

“If you are saving a shot, that has to be worth taking your shirt and trousers. I’m sure I’ll hear a few comments and once the pictures get out, I’ll hear a few more, no doubt. I’ll probably take that to my grave with me. I don’t think I scared too many spectators off the course, hopefully.”

Golfer Henrik Stenson, after disrobing to play a shot out of a muddy hazard at Doral.