"Even though I'm hoping against hope, I'm pretty sure that Barry Bonds in his steroid-induced rage will surpass Hank Aaron's record of 755. Oh well, I just hope that they place a syringe next to Barry's bat in his area of Cooperstown. "
Bonds gets such a bad reputation for no good reason at all. First of all, there is no way that the man can play as well as he has FOR SO LONG, especially at his age, if he has been using steroids. Those things will mess up a person’s body relatively quickly, and the fact that Bonds is 40 and can still do what he does, without showing signs of stopping, demonstrates that he TAKES CARE of himself and his body, rather than abusing it with steroids. In fact, look at his game day rituals. For example, he spends a lot of time stretching vigorously (note: Ken Griffey, Jr. neglected to stretch, and now look where he is). Bonds also works out 8 hours a day in the off-season and is almost Nazi-like in his dedication towards taking care of his body and maintaining his health.
Bonds is equally as careful in his actual mechanics. He’s not some meathead power hitter (ie, Ken Caminiti, a confessed steroid user who retired due to health problems resulting from his steroid use) who just tries to slam the thing out of the park. Bonds spends hours studying footage of opposing pitchers. He has the best eye in baseball. After all, he holds the all-time walks record. He makes hitting an art. Bonds may be 4 behind Adrian Beltre for the most HR’s in the NL this season, but Beltre’s been at bat 538 times, whereas Bonds has been up 333. If Bonds had had nearly as many at-bats, he would’ve shattered his single-season HR record by now. Bonds is a virtuoso.
Bonds isn’t a jerk the way professional athletes are sometimes. He’s never been arrested, or accused of rape, or drug use, or domestic abuse. He gives money to charities and brings his kids to his games. Just because Bonds doesn’t kiss-ass with the media and doesn’t come from “low beginnings,” the general perception is that he’s an *beep* and is someone we should hate. But this is wrong; the media likes to make him look like jerk but then turn around and kiss his ass as he inches up the all-time HR list. Bonds is actually a good guy who is achieving amazing things in his career (nothing that should be taken lightly), and we should respect him, not try to tear him down.
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mannysanguillen
20 years ago
I agree that steroids or no steroids, he has the quickest hands in the history of the game and may be the best hitter in the history of the game. But he's still a jerk who deserted a winner to go to a loser, breaking my heart and the hearts of thousands in Pittsburgh and the surrounding area.
And that's not the only reason he's a jerk, not to the media and fans, but also his teammates. You think Leyland and Bonds weren't on good terms? Just go ask Jeff Kent what he thinks of Bonds. Bonds on numerous occasions (at least 2 years) did not join the rest of his teammates for a team picture for a media guide. That's disrespectful to his teammates, it's sending a message that he thinks he is better than all of them. And he might be, even though until 2001, Jeff Kent had as many MVP awards as Bonds did with the Giants.
And those who are completely against the roids theory: Bonds hit just 49 HR in 480 AB in 2000, followed by 73 HR in 476 AB in 2001. Pitching in the N.L. actually got dramatically better from 2000 to 2001, as the number of runs per game dropped from 5.00 in 2000 to 4.70 in 2001. Yet Bonds managed to significantly increase his HR output. How do you explain that?
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