An embattled Milton Bradley took an important first step towards defusing a mushrooming P.R. debacle on Wednesday when, at the behest of no one in particular, he publicly apologized for "[saying] and [doing] certain things" that he now regrets. Given that we live in what is, for the most part, a forgiving society, all should be well and good now ... right?

A nice, warm thought in the abstract, but something far less than practical in reality. Irrespective of any good intentions on Bradley's part in trying to mend the fences he has so callously broken, the single most powerful entity in the Cubs universe -- that being the fan base itself -- seems quite dubious of the sincerity of Bradley's "apology," which strikes me as a surefire way of further boiling the blood of already unhappy paying customers.

Sources told FOXSports.com's Ken Rosenthal that Cubs general manager Jim Hendry would attempt to deal Bradley, preferably for a contract of similar value -- the apparent origin of those Kevin Millwood-for-Bradley rumblings -- due to the fact that team officials are not entirely sure how much of Bradley's contract could be subsidized in a trade. And, once again, a Bradley-to-Texas deal makes considerable sense on paper, provided that the financial risk is sufficiently mitigated and the cost in talent is minimal.

However, it's now coming to light that Bradley's six-month-old remarks to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram's Gil LeBreton might be actively sabotaging any sort of reunion tour, as ESPN.com's Buster Olney reported on Tuesday that the Rangers "probably wouldn't welcome back Bradley ... even on a sweetheart deal."

The question of "Why?" is easily answerable: even in the context of being a player signed to a one-year pact with little immediate job security, admitting that you're going to effectively call in sick whenever you're not feeling so hot, as a sort of stat-padding mechanism, obviously isn't going to play well with your former comrades when they've played through assorted dings, nicks, illnesses and fatigue without complaint.

Now, the one thing I've always appreciated about Bradley is his candor, his willingness to eschew the tested and perfected sports clichés in favor of an almost refreshing authenticness. When you really stop and think about it, Bradley is vocalizing something that we've long known about professional athletes, and, in particular, baseball players -- they care about their stats. A lot. They want to get paid, and those numbers loom enormously large when contract time rolls around, influencing not only the upcoming season's wages but also those of the immediately following seasons as well.

Unfortunately for Milton, that same candor sometimes borders on being self-destructive, and you can hardly fault his ex-teammates and coaches in Arlington for now being something less than receptive to the notion of their OBP-inclined friend being brought back. When you consider that Bradley's mother, Charlena Rector, is further sensationalizing an already overblown story by bringing her three-year-old grandson and the racial element into the mix, you begin to get the sense that even if enough stars were to align in the sky, the Rangers wouldn't pull the trigger on a deal simply out of a desire to avoid the inevitable media spectacle and all the distractions it would entail.

Back to square one.

Quick Hits: Team president Nolan Ryan has spoken to prospective bidder Chuck Greenberg about becoming involved in a potential ownership consortium ... Should Ian Kinsler club just one more home run before season's end, he will become just the third second baseman in major league history to amass a 30-homer, 30-steal campaign (alongside Brandon Phillips and Alfonso Soriano) ... Nelson Cruz intends to play winter ball in the Dominican Republic later this year, but reportedly won't start until December -- one month later than usual.