The very mention of Ryan Braun’s name causes most Dodger fans to see red. After all, the admitted cheater (albeit he admitted it two years later and only after being confronted with irrefutable evidence) not only cost Matt Kemp his place in baseball history as the real 2011 NL MVP, but he attacked the integrity of Dino Laurenzi Jr., a well respected health care worker and revered youth baseball coach with his vicious lies that Laurenzi had mishandled Braun’s testosterone-ladened urine sample.

“This situation has caused great emotional distress for me and my family,” said Laurenzi after being falsely accused of mishandling Braun’s tamperproof urine sample. “I have worked hard my entire life, have performed my job duties with integrity and professionalism and have done so with respect to this matter and all other collections in which I have participated.”

Although Laurenzi still maintains his full-time job as the director of rehabilitation services at a health care facility in Kenosha, WI, he was eventually let go from Comprehensive Drug Testing, Inc., the agency used by Major League Baseball in conjunction with its drug-testing program, under a shroud of controversy brought about by Braun’s lies.

When Braun’s 50-game suspension was overturned in an arbitration hearing on February 23, 2012, he couldn’t assemble a press conference fast enough to proclaimed his innocence, questioned baseball’s testing procedures and attack the credibility of Laurenzi.

“If I had done this intentionally or unintentionally, I’d be the first one to step up and say, ‘I did it,'” said Braun to the gathered media, his teammates, team officials and fans at the Brewers spring training facility in Maryvale, AZ a day later. “By no means am I perfect, but if I’ve ever made any mistakes in my life I’ve taken responsibility for my actions. I truly believe in my heart, and I would bet my life that this substance never entered my body at any point.”

According to several of his teammates, Braun went so far as to accuse Laurenzi of being anti-Semitic towards him because he is Jewish.

Yet when confronted with overwhelming evidence of his involvement in the Biogenesis scandal this past July after looking the media, his teammates, team officials and fans straight in the eyes and flat out lying to them 18 months earlier, Braun admitted that he had, in fact, used performance enhancing drugs during his 2011 MVP season, for which he received a 65-game suspension but was allowed to keep his MVP status and trophy.

One month later, on August 22, 2013, Braun finally released a written statement apologizing for his actions; and almost as an afterthought he apologized to Laurenzi, although it was anything but heartfelt and undoubtedly included only on the advice of his attorneys.

“I sincerely apologize to everybody involved in the arbitration process, including the collector, Dino Laurenzi Jr.”

That’s it.

In a 946-word written statement, Braun mentioned Laurenzi’s name exactly once. He said nothing about attacking Laurenzi’s integrity. He said nothing about the embarrassment and hardships that he cause Laurenzi and his family. He said nothing about what his actions and lies did to Laurenzi’s livelihood. And perhaps worst of all, he said nothing about calling Laurenzi an anti-Semite.

Braun’s canned written statement came a year and a half after his 50-game suspension had been overturned and year and a half after his spring training press conference that was pure and utter BS, while Dino Laurenzi Jr.’s entire life was a living hell.

And the saddest part about all of this is that Ryan Braun isn’t sorry that he cheated, he’s sorry that he got caught.

“It would definitely be nice to have a MVP trophy but I didn’t win the MVP. I lost. I got second.” No, Matt, you did win – but you got cheated out of it. (Ron Cervenka – ThinkBlueLA.com)

Why even bring up all of this Ryan Braun crap up at a time when we are all trying so desperately to put all of this PED stuff behind us (which in my opinion will never happen until there are harsher penalties in place)? Because Braun’s name popped up in the news on Friday in a rumor that the Brewers might be interested in trading him.

The burning question is, of course, why would any team even consider trading for this cheater? He’s is the Barry Bonds of the new millennium. Not only will Braun be disdained and booed everywhere he goes (especially at Dodger Stadium) for the rest of his career, but his teammates will never completely trust him ever again. But regardless, Braun is once again in the news – even if the rumors appear to be untrue.

“We have no intentions of trading Ryan,” said Brewers general manager Doug Melvin when asked about the rumors. “There’s absolutely no truth to that. We’ve never contacted any team about Ryan.”

Knowing what’s coming (the boos and perhaps even a boycott by Brewers fans), you would think that Melvin and Brewers owner Mark Attanasio would jump at the chance to get out from under Braun’s insane contract.

Just how insane is it, you ask?

The Brewers still owe Braun $22 million through the 2015 season and then his five-year/$105 million contract extension kicks in – with a $15 million option or $4 million buyout for 2021.

…and they say “Cheaters never prosper.”