Say it ain't so, Ryan Braun

When I got the news about Ryan Braun's positive test for performance-enhancing drugs, the news hit me like a brick wall. I wasn't sure how to react. There was a mixture of anger, confusion, sadness, and holding out hope that the test was a fluke. I don't think I really moved for around five minutes. Braun has been my favorite player in all of sports ever since the middle of his rookie campaign with the Brewers, and news like a positive PED test isn't something that just flies under my radar. I had built him up over the past 4 seasons so that he had this sort of unbreakable armor that would deflect nearly any kind of negative story that came out about him and would forever keep him on the highest pedestal. Every story except one. Once I heard the news yesterday, that armor totally combusted and instead of being a fan of this indestructible player it was like I was a fan of Darth Vader after his mask had been taken off and all that was left was a wrinkled old man. The news about Manny Ramirez' test wasn't a shocker, I would've believed anything about Manny if I had heard it. Barry Bonds has been under fire for the better part of a decade and nobody has even tried to defend him since the guy was the worst teammate imaginable. But Ryan Braun? This guy has been a model citizen and has never been linked to PEDs, even in his minor league days. He was going to be the face of the Milwaukee Brewers franchise for the rest of his career and had just won his first NL MVP award. If he truly did take PEDs, and that word "if" is a hard one to keep attached to a positive test these days in Major League Baseball, then he has failed himself, the Milwaukee Brewers organization, the Brewers fans, and the game of baseball. He says the test is "B.S." but for me it is hard to believe anything that he says now. Braun was once Superman, now he's as Clark Kent has it gets.