Manny’s back

SAN DIEGO – Manny Ramirez returned to the big leagues as only he could.

Wearing sunglasses and with his famous dreadlocks in a ponytail, the Los Angeles Dodgers’ slugger apologized to fans and teammates during a news conference Friday afternoon. He refused to answer questions about steroids.

“I’m here. I’m excited. I can’t wait to get into the field,” Ramirez said as his 50-game suspension for violating baseball’s drug policy ended.

“Showtime tonight!” he said as he walked out of his pregame news conference.

It was for the Dodgers, who jumped to a 5-0 first-inning lead on their way to a 6-3 win, but not for Ramirez, who looked like a guy who hadn’t faced major league pitching since May 6. He went 0 for 3 with a walk.

Ramirez’s ban was based on evidence he used human chorionic gonadotropin, a fertility drug that’s banned by baseball.