It's not really here for the Dodgers, either. Rather, only one Dodger.

“Being the personality that he is, there will definitely be a curiosity factor as Manny Ramirez returns from suspension,” Fox Sports President Ed Goren said in a news release announcing that Ramirez's first at-bat tomorrow will be shown to the entire country, not just the 46 percent scheduled to see Padres-Dodgers at 1:10 p.m.

“We think many baseball fans will be interested to see how he's received by the fans in San Diego.”

Actually, the reaction should be predictable. Half the people will be Dodgers fans, which means they'll be cheering Ramirez. And the other half will be booing him, which they'd be doing regardless of his suspension because he'll be wearing a shirt with “Los Angeles” across the front of it.

Either way, “whether it's celebrated or people don't approve of it, it's a story,” said Eric Karros, the former Dodgers (and Patrick Henry High) star who will be calling the game alongside Dick Stockton.

“You're talking about probably one of the four best hitters in the game, one of the most recognizable faces, and he was suspended for 50 games,” Karros said this week by phone. “So, no matter what sport ... if you took one of the top players and took him out, then his comeback, regardless of what you thought about it, would be news, and would be of interest.”

Karros has been outspoken in expressing disappointment that players like Ramirez “perpetuate the feeling that everybody in the '90s and early 2000s cheated. It's one of those ‘you're guilty until proven innocent,’ which is not right; it's not true. I know for a fact there's a number of guys that didn't do anything.”

And yet, Karros is excited to attend tonight's game with his two sons, ages 8 and 6. “As a fan,” he said, “I can't wait to go watch him hit. I can't wait to see the expressions on my kids' faces when Manny comes out. They're excited to see him.”

Karros said his sons understand that “Manny got caught for doing something that wasn't right, and as with any of your actions there are consequences.” But they're obviously too young to understand everything regarding the steroid era. “Of course not; they're 8 and 6,” he said. “I mean, there's a lot of 30-year-olds don't get it, either.”

As for his kids, Karros said, “They want to see dreadlocks; they want to see Manny hit. To them, Manny is a character, this greater-than-life sort of thing.”

Fox doesn't often spend much time discussing the steroids issue doing games, but Karros said he expects Stockton to ask him about it at some point during tomorrow's telecast.

“I'm probably not going to be much different than what I just told you, unless I have some sort of revelation or when I'm sitting in the stands Friday I have a different feeling than I thought I would,” Karros said.

“It's a guy coming back playing baseball. I mean, it's like, who cares what I think? It's irrelevant because he served his suspension, it's going on, it doesn't matter what I think, it doesn't matter what you write, it doesn't matter what Dick Stockton says. It may elicit conversation. But is what it is.

“Quite frankly, I don't think I'm going to feel any differently. I'm disappointed it happened; it's not good for the game. The positive thing is the game doesn't care who it suspends, nobody's immune to it, but there are not a lot of positives coming out of this.”