Like him or not, give Bonds his due
One of these days, Barry Bonds is going to break Hank Aaron's career record 755 home runs.
Baseball hierarchy finds itself in somewhat of a dilemma. Commissioner Bud Selig hasn't committed to be there when the record falls. As well, it appears Aaron has no interest in being present.
Some would rather see Barry Bonds simply disappear - or hit his 754th homer and then retire, sparing what many feel is an embarrassing situation.
If it's a record, it's a record, no matter who sets it or whether you like them.
I'm not a huge fan of Barry Bonds - many agree he's not an easy person to like, even if you don't know him personally - but one has to appreciate his talent.
There was a time I didn't want to see him break Aaron's record but, I've done an “about-face.”
I still don't like him, his truculent attitude, his aloofness - which I see as symptomatic of many of today's professional athletes - and his refusal to come clean and admit whether or not he knowingly used performance-enhancing drugs.
At the same time, it's hard to argue against Bonds as one of the two or three best-ever to play ball for money - and, as some believe, maybe even the very best ever, when you combine all aspects of his game with the era in which he played.
That last is arguably the most important. The era in which Bonds has played is different: home runs are almost commonplace. Bonds is on the verge of hitting more than anyone else. Like him or not, you can't condemn the man for taking advantage of the opportunities available to him.
The truth is, baseball has a problem with steroids because it “wimped out” on the issue, choosing not to ban performance-enhancing drugs outright - and impose penalties on offenders - when it had the chance.
Bonds made his professional debut in 1986. His first great season was 1990: 33 homers, 114 RBIs and batted .301, which earned him his first of seven MVP awards. Before you blame it on any external source, remember: it normally takes any player, even the really good ones, four or five years to fully mature as a hitter.
Bonds continued to post solid numbers - he repeated as MVP in 1992 - before leaving Pittsburgh for the San Francisco Giants.
There's no question Bonds has thrived in San Francisco, especially since the Giants moved to PacBell Stadium - a park tailored as much to Bonds as Yankee Stadium was to Babe Ruth.
The “did he or didn't he” steroid issue won't go away.
It's my belief, while using steroids may make you stronger, it doesn't have a huge effect on the ability to hit a baseball. That is something you're born with and, the simple truth is, some people are better at it than others. Most of the great home run hitters took a while to mature, and few, if any, physically looked the same at 42 as they did at 24.
Bonds, over 22 seasons - a similar length of career as both Aaron and Ruth - had 748 home runs in 9,674 official at bats, along with 2,889 hits, 2,186 runs scored, 1,961 RBIs, 5,881 total bases, 594 doubles and even 513 stolen bases. Let's not forget the 2,493 walks, 669 of them intentional - which arguably cost him a chance at even more home runs.
There has been some debate over whether Bonds belongs in the Hall of Fame. Based on his statistics alone - and his sustained excellence (seven MVP awards in a 14-year span) - he deserves to be enshrined among the rest of the greats of the game.
He's not the friendliest or most accommodating of people, but not everybody in the Hall of Fame was a friend to all, or lily-white.
Some call Bonds a cheater. He may have used steroids, and they may or may not have helped him set his records, but he's never actually admitted it - and, until he does, we have no choice but to give him the benefit of the doubt.
The final verdict on Bonds will come from the court of public opinion. Mark McGwire, in his first year of Hall of Fame eligibility this year, received barely enough votes to remain on the ballot for another year. With Bonds, we'll just have to wait and see.
