Shocker: Kaiser Permanente no longer sponsoring Manny Ramirez bobblehead

Kaiser Permanente has dropped its sponsorship of Manny Ramirez Bobblehead Night on July 22 at Dodger Stadium, a team spokesman confirmed.

The healthcare giant that brought you the “May you live long and thrive” ad campaign apparently decided that putting its name behind the current face of performance-enhancing substances wasn’t a hot idea.

Kaiser was announced as the Dodgers’ official health insurance provider earlier this year and will remain a partner, continuing its support of many of the team’s kid-friendly programs. Here’s a quote from the original press release:

“Kaiser Permanente and the Dodgers have a shared vision of excellence and community involvement that will improve the health and well-being of the communities we serve,” said Benjamin Chu, MD, MPH, president of Kaiser Permanente Southern California. “By joining efforts with the Dodgers, Kaiser Permanente will be able to reach more families with our messages about healthy eating and fitness, and together we can make positive changes that will improve the health of children and adults alike.”

So while there’s good ad space currently available on the Ramirez bobblehead, it’s entirely possible that no sponsor will emerge before the boxes go to print.

Which could be nice. How many times have you gotten a baseball giveaway and thought, “Wish it didn’t have that fugly logo on it?”

The Casey Blake bobblehead and Carl’s Jr. clash tonight.