Crushing blow to Bucs, baseball as steroid cloud descends on Starling Marte

Major League Baseball's reaction to Starling Marte's 80-game suspension Tuesday -- and the cloud that has now descended on the sport just two weeks into the season -- consisted of a 51-word news release announcing the specifics. But it doesn't take a great deal of imagination to envision what an accompanying statement from commissioner Rob Manfred might look like.

Manfred would most likely herald Marte's suspension as another sign that baseball is ever-vigilant in its efforts to eradicate performance-enhancing drugs. Anyone who thinks stars are immune in baseball's quest to root out the problem is mistaken.

But that's small consolation in the big picture. The Marte news is terrible for the…