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Barry Bonds (Juiced Merge)

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Barry Bonds needed to sit down with Hank Aaron a long time ago, and listen to what Hank had to say about what "real" racism was, not the perceived racism that Bonds believes exists against him. Hank dealt with daily death threats against him and his family during his pursuit of Ruth.

To me, Bonds is a "non-story." I hate to wish ill-will on people, but deep inside me I hope Bonds sustains some type of "physical problem" that keeps him from passing Hank. No matter what, Hank Aaron will ALWAYS be my Home Run Champ. He played the game with incredible class and dignity. PLUS, he's a huge Browns fan!!
 
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ABJ

5/21/06

Bonds ties the Babe with home run No. 714

JANIE McCAULEY

Associated Press

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Ben Margot/AP
Barry Bonds hits his 714th career home run, off Oakland Athletics pitcher Brad Halsey during the second inning of their inter-league baseball game. Audio Slideshow: Bonds hits No 714
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OAKLAND, Calif. - The agonizing wait is over for Barry Bonds. He and the Babe are even at 714. Bonds tied Babe Ruth for second place on the career home run list Saturday, ending a nine-game homerless stretch with a shot into the first deck of the elevated stands in right-center during San Francisco's 4-2, 10-inning victory over the Oakland Athletics.
"This is a great accomplishment because of Babe Ruth and what he brought to the game of baseball and his legacy in the game of baseball," Bonds said. "This and a World Series ring to me would be the ultimate. He changed the game of baseball. ... It's just great to be in the same class."
The second-inning drive landed about eight rows up in the seats overlooking the high fence just to the left of the out-of-town scoreboard. Though the A's don't provide estimated distances on home runs, this one appeared to travel about 400 feet - far from being one of Bonds' trademark behemoth drives.
Booed when he was introduced before the game, the Giants' star received a long standing ovation after his home run, and the game was delayed about 90 seconds.
Next up is Hank Aaron's record of 755.
"This took a lot off me. It's good," Bonds said. "A lot of relief. Well, until something else comes up."
Bonds, dogged by allegations of steroid use and repeated taunts on the road, was immediately greeted by his teammates after circling the bases. They surrounded him at the top of the dugout as Bonds tipped his cap and blew a kiss to his wife and two daughters sitting in the first row.
Bonds had gone 29 at-bats without a homer since hitting No. 713 with a 450-foot shot May 7 in Philadelphia. His 16-year-old son, Nikolai, a Giants bat boy, was waiting for him at home plate and they embraced.
"I like the fact that ball was hit, that ball was crushed," San Francisco manager Felipe Alou said.
The Giants plan to commemorate No. 715 in their own ballpark. Major League Baseball has said it won't do anything special to celebrate Bonds moving into second place, and a commissioner's office spokesman said baseball had no comment Saturday.
The ball was caught on the fly by 19-year-old Tyler Snyder of nearby Pleasanton, who was cheered by fans around him and quickly left the Coliseum with his souvenir. When Bonds was told Snyder is an A's fan, he quipped: "I, um, forgive you. If he doesn't like me, give me the ball."
Left-hander Brad Halsey became the 420th pitcher to allow a homer to Bonds, who was San Francisco's designated hitter in an interleague series against the A's.
The seven-time NL MVP was booed when his name was announced before the game and again the moment he began walking to the batter's box. He connected on a 1-1 pitch from Halsey, making history with his sixth home run this season.
"It's a pretty unbelievable thing," Astros reliever Brad Lidge said in Houston, where the Giants swept a three-game series earlier in the week. "No matter what kind of controversy surrounds him and no matter what side of the fence you are on as far as what he did or didn't do with performance-enhancing drugs, you've got to admit that it's a pretty impressive number."
Bonds came to the plate in the third to chants of "Barry! Barry!" and struck out looking. He flied out to left leading off the sixth and was intentionally walked in the eighth and again in the 10th with none out and runners on second and third.
Bonds had hoped to reach his latest milestone home run at home in San Francisco, where he hit Nos. 500, 600 and 700 along with 660 and 661 to tie and pass his godfather, Willie Mays. In 2001, Bonds hit the final three of his 73 homers at home to break Mark McGwire's single-season record of 70.
"I'm just glad it happened in the Bay," Bonds said. "East Bay, West Bay. I'm just glad it happened here."
Still, the slugger had to be happy to hit No. 714 back in the Bay Area in front of his family and friends. Only six days earlier, Bonds suggested he was being haunted by "two ghosts" - a reference to Ruth and Aaron.
Ruth passed Sam Thompson to move into second place on June 20, 1921, when he hit his 127th home run. Aaron passed Ruth in April 1974 - and now Hammerin' Hank's mark is the only one left for Bonds to chase.
Yet Bonds has said that could be a long shot considering he turns 42 on July 24, is playing on a surgically repaired right knee and with bone chips floating around in his left elbow.
In his 21st major league season, Bonds has hit nine career home runs as a designated hitter - and realizes his future could be in the American League as a DH if he returns in 2007.
Bonds had 40 plate appearances between Nos. 713 and 714. He had been 4-for-29 (.138) with 10 walks, three intentional, six runs scored, two RBIs and four strikeouts since his last homer.
"He finally hit it? It's about time," Ken Griffey Jr., who entered the night with 539 career homers, said in the Cincinnati Reds' clubhouse in Detroit. "Now I don't have to keep watching TV to see him do it."
Bonds was destined for greatness at an early age. The son of three-time All-Star Bobby Bonds and the godson of one of the game's greatest players in Mays, Bonds spent his childhood years roaming the clubhouse at Candlestick Park, getting tips from Mays and other Giants.
In a matter of years, Bonds went from a wiry leadoff hitter when he broke into the big leagues with Pittsburgh in 1986 to the most feared slugger of his generation and possibly ever.
It was a transformation many - including federal prosecutors in the BALCO case - believe was fueled by the use of performance-enhancing drugs. Bonds has long denied ever knowingly taking steroids, though the new book "Game of Shadows" reveals his alleged longtime doping regimen the authors say began after the 1998 season when Bonds saw the attention McGwire and Sammy Sosa generated in their race for the single-season home run record.
Bonds' personal trainer, Greg Anderson, pleaded guilty to his role in a steroid distribution ring, and a federal grand jury is looking into whether Bonds perjured himself when he testified to the separate grand jury that indicted Anderson and three others in the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative scandal.
One fan in the front row behind home plate Saturday sported a No. 25 Bonds jersey with BALCO on the back where Bonds' name should be.
Partly because of his prickly relationship with fans and the media, Bonds was never a beloved superstar even before the steroid allegations. He was not voted by fans onto baseball's All-Century team, losing out to Griffey, among others.
But the latest accusations have hurt his reputation even more, and the anticipation as he neared Ruth's mark was tempered for that reason. Just as when Aaron passed the Babe in 1974, there is resentment among those who believe Ruth is the greatest player ever, although this time it's more because of steroids than racism.
The allegations of cheating have put a cloud over Bonds' rapid rise up the home run chart. He hit his 500th homer on April 17, 2001, on the way to a record 73 that season, and reached 700 on Sept. 17, 2004, a stretch unmatched by any player at the end of his career.
"He's the greatest hitter I've played against and one of the best of this era," Oakland's Jay Payton said. "It's part of history and it's exciting to be part of that."
Before the bottom of the 11th inning in the Yankees' 5-4, 11-inning win over the Mets at Shea Stadium, a message on the scoreboard announced Bonds' 714th homer, and the crowd booed.
"I still remember Barry Bonds as a great player, regardless of steroids or what," Yankees manager Joe Torre said. "How many home runs would he have hit without whatever people are saying is going on? I don't know. I know one thing: That player-wise, he's pretty good."
Bonds has said his many milestones won't mean as much later if he doesn't win a World Series ring, the only thing missing from a decorated resume featuring the record seven NL MVP awards, 13 All-Star selections and eight Gold Gloves in left field.
The Giants fell six outs short of winning it all in 2002 when they blew their lead in Game 6 and lost in the deciding seventh game to the Angels. While Bonds was at his best that postseason, with eight homers and 27 walks, it was his struggles in his first five trips to the playoffs with Pittsburgh and San Francisco that characterized his career before he became a record-setting home run hitter.
No matter the controversy, his home fans still adore him, chanting his name when he comes to bat and waving yellow rubber chickens whenever an opposing manager makes the most unpopular choice to intentionally walk him.
It is Bonds, after all, who is the biggest reason 3 million fans a year pack the seats at the Giants' sparkling waterfront ballpark, which opened in 2000.
Ray Durham hit a go-ahead RBI single to score Omar Vizquel in the 10th, Steve Finley added a sacrifice fly in the inning and Mike Matheny homered in the seventh as the Giants ended a four-game losing streak in the Bay Bridge Series.
Jason Schmidt pitched into the ninth before missing his chance to win a fourth straight decision. Armando Benitez (3-0) blew his second save but recovered for the win, while Kiko Calero (0-1) loaded the bases in the 10th on the way to the loss.
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ABJ

5/21/06

Value of No. 715 ball may underwhelm

JORDAN ROBERTSON

Associated Press

<!-- begin body-content -->SAN FRANCISCO - It's a piece of baseball history that should have auctioneers and speculators salivating. But after Barry Bonds matched Babe Ruth's home run mark Saturday, even the savviest collectors are shrugging at the value of the ball that will vault the San Francisco slugger into second place behind Hank Aaron with No. 715.
Mixed feelings about Bonds, the subject of steroids speculation for years and now the target of a federal perjury investigation, likely will lower the price to levels far below other high-profile hits.
"There is obviously a black cloud over this historic home run," said David Kohler, president of SCP Auctions in Laguna Hills, Calif., which specializes in sports memorabilia. "People are not scrambling after Barry Bonds jerseys and balls. Normally, with a historic event like this, we would see a lot more demand."
And Major League Baseball originally wasn't even going to authenticate Bonds' home run balls with the traditional hologram reserved for historic hits, before reversing course to help avoid having multiple claims of ownership of the ball.
There was no doubt who grabbed No. 714. Bonds' homer Saturday in Oakland was caught on the fly by 19-year-old Tyler Snyder of Pleasanton. He quickly left the Coliseum with his souvenir - but not before giving his opinion of Bonds.
"I hate that guy," Snyder told reporters before he was whisked away. "I don't really care for the guy."
The No. 715 ball is expected to fetch around $100,000 at auction - if it goes that rout - far less than the $500,000 some experts say it could have commanded without the controversy surrounding Bonds.
The estimate is based on the sale of Bonds' 700th home run ball, which went for just over $100,000, coupled with the temerity of some collectors concerned their investment will lose value if Bonds is proven to have used steroids, auctioneers said.
The recently released book "Game of Shadows" details steroid allegations against Bonds, and a grand jury is investigating whether he lied under oath when he said he never knowingly used performance-enhancing drugs.
Comic book icon Todd McFarlane, who paid $3 million for Mark McGwire's 70th home run ball in 1999 and just over $500,000 for Bonds' 73rd home run ball of the 2001 season, said he'll probably bid on No. 715, but he's lukewarm about the milestone.
McFarlane said the most he'd pay would be $70,000.
"Most of the stuff that I chase, I want number one," McFarlane said. "What happens when I walk into a room and say I have the second-best ball? The first question is, 'Well, where's the best one?'"
It's not all about Bonds' stats.
His brusque attitude also could weigh against the sale price, said Michael Heffner, president of the Lelands auction house.
"Collectors haven't written him off, but he's not on the same level as Babe Ruth," Heffner said. "Babe Ruth has already gone down in the history books as this lovable character. The perception of Barry Bonds is much different. The public views him as a bad guy who's not nice to his fans."
But a patient collector could make money if Bonds is not indicted and the ball spikes in value, said Doug Allen, president of Mastronet.com, an online sports auction site.
"Once the dust settles, people are going to realize he's one of the best to ever play the game," Allen said. "I truly believe that. This accomplishment will be incredible, but I don't think people can see that clearly right now."
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Legacy of lies
Even by Bonds' standards, latest about-face shameful
Posted: Tuesday May 23, 2006 11:50AM; Updated: Tuesday May 23, 2006 12:09PM


Barry Bonds claims he no longer remembers saying, "The one I care about is Babe Ruth and 715.... Hank Aaron can have those 755 home runs."


There will come a day when Barry Bonds leaves baseball, and everything about the game will be the better for it.

In the meantime, the more the man reveals himself, the more we know him to be the absolute fraud for which his name has become synonymous.

Only the latest example of the deceit that is Bonds occurred after he hit home run No. 714 to tie Babe Ruth for No. 2 on the all-time list. The same man who in an interview with reporters before the 2003 All-Star Game gleefully looked forward to wiping Ruth from the record books suddenly -- because it fit the purpose of trying to gain a shred of public respect -- paid homage to Ruth and his legacy. When a reporter reminded Bonds of his 2003 comments, he claimed not to remember and, as The New York Times reported, called the words "somebody's fabrication."

The only fabrication is Bonds himself. I was there that day in Chicago, along with as many as 40 other reporters around him at a table in a hotel ballroom, and I was no more than six feet away from him. Bonds spent a great deal of time talking about the importance of the Negro Leagues Museum in Kansas City -- the same museum he stiffed in 2002 when, according to the Associated Press, "museum officials said they were unable, despite months of trying, to even get an acknowledgment from home run king Barry Bonds, who was voted the Oscar Charleston Award.''

Subsequent talk of Hank Aaron then turned into a question about Aaron's home run record.

Said Bonds, "The one I care about is Babe Ruth and 715.''

Asked why, Bonds replied, "As a left-handed hitter, I wiped him out. That's it. And in the baseball world, Babe Ruth is everything, right? I got his slugging percentage, his on-base percentage, his walks and I'll take his home runs. That's it. Don't talk about him no more.... I'm the next generation of the Negro leagues. Hank Aaron can have those 755 home runs.''

It is yet another window into the shallow soul of Bonds that he thinks he could disrespect Ruth in front of the national media at a showcase baseball event, have it be widely and repeatedly reported, and then only three years later claim it was a "fabrication." Just like he never knew those were steroids he put into his body. He and his records are truly unbelievable.
 
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MililaniBuckeye said:
The near complete lack of response in this thread to Bond's surpassing such a supposedly historic sports milestones says it all...
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Sure does...who gives a fuck? he'll either limp-dick his way through the season, hit about 15-20 more, and then retire short of Aaron to act like some kind of martyr, or he'll stick around next year, hit .203, and hit just enough home runs to pass Aaron. Either way, he didn't do what Aaron did, in any way, shape, or form, and as far as Bonds being the "greatest player ever" goes, I never saw him pitch like Ruth, and I'm pretty sure the greatest player ever could have thrown out Sid Bream at home.

Besides, he wants everyone to make a big stink about him passing Ruth because he hates Ruth, but quite frankly, I think Marco Andretti said it best today..."Second is nothing".
 
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