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Had I been more invested in the Red Sox than I am at this stage of my life, or if I were covering them for a living, you'd probably be reading a far more passionate opinion here about the decline and fall of Manny Ramirez than you are.

As it is, I'll be more than happy to borrow Bill Belichick's favorite phrase, and say simply, "It is what it is."

Manny Ramirez was one of the most "interesting" players ever to wear a Red Sox uniform, no doubt about that. He was also one heck of a hitter. It's just a shame that those two qualities that raised him above the level of the many average, mundane ballplayers in Major League Baseball became repellant, and apparently turned him into the sort of toxic influence in the Red Sox clubhouse that hasn't been seen locally since the waning days of Nomar Garciaparra's tenure in town.

But come on, folks. Didn't we see this coming?

Didn't all of the signs tell you that Mt. St. Helen's would eventually erupt on Yawkey Way? The lollygagging on the basepaths? The phantom injuries? The disappearances through the scoreboard doors and the suspicious illnesses to relatives he probably doesn't even have? Manny was a train wreck waiting to happen for a lot of years. Only his productivity, and the fact that the Red Sox won two World Series championships on his watch, delayed the inevitable. And everyone involved - teammates, the owners, manager Terry Francona, fans and the media - turned a blind eye to the problems while things were going well.

I can't believe anyone really thought that five years after his retirement, Ramirez was going to be standing before a crowd at Cooperstown, Red Sox hat in hand, telling the world he had given every last ounce of effort for his beloved ballclub.

Instead, Manny burned a few bridges as he left town, telling the Spanish-language arm of ESPN that the Red Sox didn't deserve a player of his caliber. But his parting shots weren't the first salvos fired in this War of the Rose Hose.

In fact, it's humorous to be reminded of how fast people can turn on a baseball player in Boston - especially those who only a few hours ago, were his employers and co-workers, and have the power to control the Manny Message.

The spin is in, and it's not very complementary.

But wasn't it just this spring that the ever-cooperative Boston baseball media was cranking out story after story about Manny's new attitude, his sharper focus and his outstanding physical condition? Aided by Manny's newly gregarious rapport with the media that surfaced this spring, the conclusion was that the veteran outfielder was gearing up for a great season, something that would make it a slam dunk for the Red Sox to pick up his contract option or extend it.

Just a little more than three months later, and now Manny is to blame for not only ruining the chemistry in the clubhouse, but he was also probably to blame for the bombing of Pearl Harbor and global warming as well, given the tone of the more recent articles being written about him.

Yes, it was maddening to see him fail to run out grounders. But I challenge you to watch David Ortiz and Jason Varitek closely, and see how many times they put a 100-percent effort into each trip down first base.

It's a long season, I'll give them that. And they don't seem to turn it on and off with reckless disregard for the efforts of their teammates. Manny's cavalier and selfish attitude had worn thin, and they're making him pay for it now.

I also wonder if perhaps the pressure Ramirez put upon himself to have a big year somehow soured his attitude. Early injuries and later struggles at the plate weren't helped by the lengthy absence of Ortiz in the lineup. Maybe Manny just couldn't handle the pressure of having to live up to his own press clippings. Now, he's gone. Everyone seems to have gotten what they wanted for the time being. We'll see how people feel about it if the Sox finish six games behind Tampa Bay and three behind the Yankees, and Ortiz is batting .241, when it's time to make the tee times.

In the meantime, the Sox seem to have gotten a competent, if bland, replacement in Jason Bay, who certainly looked like he was putting in a full effort in his debut during the 2-1 win over Oakland in 12 innings Friday night.

And isn't it really strange that the Los Angeles Dodgers have become the repository for so many disgruntled ex-Red Sox sourpusses? Nomar, Derek Lowe (who was known to become unhinged more than once during his Boston tenure) and now Manny Ramirez? Is this some sort of bizarre plot concocted to exact revenge upon Dodgers' manager Joe Torre for his successes with the Yankees?

Torre had better have 25 cabs waiting in the Chavez Ravine parking lots to accommodate all of his players, given the team chemistry that must be simmering out there with all these ex-Sox clubhouse cancers running about.

Or maybe the Dodgers, who lost Manny's debut game despite his 2-for-4 effort, might find a way to get over .500 in the pathetic NL West and somehow ride his coattails to a championship.

At that point, the spin being generated from the vicinity of Kenmore Square would be absolutely dizzying - more than adequate to take everyone's minds off that recent 18-1 football season.

In fact, there are probably 80 guys and a slew of coaches here in Foxboro who might want to send a farewell bouquet to Manny, thanking him for shifting the focus away from that dark day in Phoenix as their training camp got underway.

So long, Manny, and thanks for the memories. All of them. At least you were never dull.

MARK FARINELLA may be reached at 508-236-0315 or via e-mail at mfarinel@thesunchronicle.com. Read Farinella's blog, "Blogging Fearlessly," at thesunchronicle.com/farinella.