Wait, Manny can count to 500?

Manny Ramirez hit his 500th home run Saturday night, becoming the 24th player in MLB history to reach that mark.

Ramirez hit the big fly in Baltimore, the site of his famous “high-five double-play” earlier this season. After the homer, instead of running around the bases, Manny ran straight past second and toward the left field wall, where he slapped a Boston fan’s hand, before running back to the infield, touching third and reaching home, doing the moonwalk. He was praised by the national media for the next week for being “fun to watch.”

In all seriousness: As goofy as this guy is, and as lost as he can look: damn, he’s good. At the risk of entering into the realm of hyperbole, he’s going to go down as one of the best hitters of all-time, though top 5 is probably a bit much, people. Still, he’s certainly one of the top hitters of this era.

He enters a 500 home run club that — while diluted in recent years — is still in pretty heady territory. And the best part: you don’t have to ask the question with Manny. There’s no doubt about the legitimacy of his numbers. Clearly, he doesn’t care enough to be using performance enhancing drugs. And c’mon, could you even imagine Manny with roid rage?

As for him being fun-to-watch. It’s an overused phrase. But there is some sort of innate goodness about him that is hard to resist. I think that’s why he can say and do whatever and get away with it.

And look! We just made it through a whole post without saying “that’s just Manny being Manny.” Oh, wait. Damn. Nevermind.

(Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images)

Andrew Friedman should write a book

And that book should be called “How to Play the Major League Market.”

The anti-dynasty

It’s amazing to think that when this started in 2004, when Detroit took down the Lakers in five games to win the NBA title, the Pistons were the model of the ultimate team.

Unselfish. Fun-loving. Hard-working.

After losing to the Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals, it’s clear that Detroit has become the example of how not to play or act.

Over-confident. Whiny. Arrogant.

And because of the attitude this team has adopted over the past few years — because of the way this team let success get to its head — the Pistons have also become colossal underachievers, leaving opportunity after opportunity on the table, unclaimed. Leaving promise after promise, unfulfilled.

And there’s no one to blame, but themselves.