Do we need sports despite the taint?

With the latest revelation that Manny Ramirez has tested positive for drugs that have been listed as forbidden by Major League Baseball, will this have any impact on the sport?

And why does this or any professional sport that increasingly distances itself economically and financially from its following have impact on our lives at all?

Or does it simply boil down to this question about us, the fans? Are competitive sports surrogates or substitutes for our anger, suppressed outrage, and inhibited violence that would otherwise happen if professional baseball, basketball, and football didn't exist?

If this is the case then it really doesn't matter what professional athletes do. Perhaps we need them, regardless of their behavior, much more than we think.

James D. Cook

Streamwood