• by Wayne Friedman , Staff Writer, May 8, 2009

In America, everybody loves a comeback. But these days, high profile returns come with a lot of road rash.

Manny Ramirez of the Los Angeles Dodgers has been accused by Major League Baseball of taking performance-enhancing drugs, and is getting a massive 50-game suspension.  He says he's innocent; some physician seemingly gave him something not right.  In any event, he'll be back by July.

If Ramirez was a professional cyclist riding in Europe -- under more or less the same drug testing -- it would be much worse.  He'd be banned for two years. Sure there's an appeal process there as well. But he would not be allowed to ride unless his name was cleared. Typically this ends prospective comebacks -- if not careers.  

All in all, Major League Baseball has the easiest drug policy of almost any sport. It loves comebacks. Los Angeles Dodgers' TV outlets would like a nice return as well.

There will be other comebacks. Ben Bernanke, the Federal Reserve chairman, expects the economy will have a comeback by year's end. TV advertising sellers will hang their hats on this, believing this news will help them convince marketers to spend normally in the upfront advertising marketplace that will start in a few weeks.

News Corp. chairman Rupert Murdoch says "The worst is over" -- and recently, media stocks as a group made some impressive price gains.  Is the comeback for real?

Surely Ramirez would say otherwise -- that this is this beginning of the end.  Big-name players like Clemens, McGwire, Bonds, Rodriguez, Giambi, and others may have had a little extra help in their careers -- but none have been suspended.  

We love comebacks because we love to see people and companies rising from adversity. It makes for a good story.  But more bad TV and sports stuff is out there.  We have memories of how our 401Ks -- and baseball players -- used to perform. Will all of that still sell ?