Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Houston Astros

He received thunderous applause and a hearty ovation, but none of that could get his team a victory.

The reaction Manny Ramirez received, in his return to Dodger Stadium after spending 50 days on the sidelines due to a suspension from performance enhancement drugs, is a microcosm of how fans really feel about athletes and drugs.

When Barry Bonds used to visit Dodger Stadium, he received the worst treatment of any other stadium, but Ramirez will be greeted as a hero. In other words, fans only care about steroids if the users are on other teams!

Ramirez went 1-for-4, but his return was lost in the terrific performance by Wandy Rodriguez, who dominated the MLB-best team, throwing six shutout innings in the 3-0 Houston Astros (45-44) victory, which pushed them over .500 once again.

The Houston Astros have not exactly lit the world on fire with their play this season, but have been playing better over the past month. They are just three games out of first in the NL Central, but have the unenviable position of being in the six-team division. They are in fourth place and would have to leapfrog them all to get into first place, making the three-game deficit seem more like a six-game deficit.

One of the reasons for Houstons hole is that they are 17-24 against their own division, but 17-7 against the NL West, which boast some of the better teams and hottest teams in the league.

Roy Oswalt (5-4, 3.85) will try to keep it going for the Astros and win their third game in a row. Oswalt is almost perfect is six starts against the NL West, posting a 5-0 record with a 2.51 ERA. His only no-decision was against Los Angeles, when he allowed four runs in six innings, but Houston came back to win 6-5.

Chad Billingsley (9-4, 3.38) was one of three All-Star to represent the Los Angeles Dodgers in St. Louis, pitching in the fifth inning and allowing the American League a run to tie that game. He picked up a no-decision when he allowed five runs on five hits over five innings of a 12-8, 10 inning win for the Los Angeles Dodgers over the Milwaukee Brewers last Friday.

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