AJC > Sports > Columnists > Archives > 2006 > May > 28 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USBonds’ 715 embarrasses baseball
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Jeff Schultz
Barry Bonds was in Milwaukee recently and the commissioner of baseball wouldn’t make the 10-minute drive from his house to watch him. So it follows that Bud Selig wasn’t in when Bonds moved past Babe Ruth on the home run list.
Nor were any of Ruth’s children. Nor any high-level officials. Nor anybody whose presence screamed, “I’m important, so I’m here.”
Barry Bonds hit his 715th home run Sunday. But every overblown ESPN news break-in couldn’t drown out the sad reality of the moment. It was as awkward as it was historical. Some wanted to watch. Most wanted to cover their eyes.
This wasn’t a player punctuating greatness. This was the most vilified sports star we’ve ever seen affirming his place among the five darkest moments in baseball history.
Count them. Like plagues:
- Eight members of the Chicago White Sox are banned for conspiring to throw the 1919 World Series.
- Pete Rose, the game’s greatest hitter, agrees to a lifetime ban for betting — on baseball.
- Baseball cancels the 1994 World Series, not because of natural disaster but rather mutant labor negotiators.
- Congress holds steroid hearings. Among the Murderers Row giving testimony: Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Rafael Palmeiro and Jose Canseco — who ironically turns out to be baseball’s shining light.
Bonds passes the great Ruth and closes in on the great Hank Aaron. But he’s the poster child of the steroid era, and his baggage and personality have led him to become the sport’s greatest pox instead of ambassador.
This is a sport that embraces its heroes and statistical achievements. Numbers are dipped in gold. 56. 61. .400. 714. 755.
Now here comes a man who puts up incredible numbers and few outside of San Francisco want to celebrate. Selig said weeks ago he wouldn’t show up for 715. Hold the pomp, shelve the circumstance. Selig would close his eyes and pretend it didn’t happen. There’s an old country-western tune that applies here: “If the phone don’t ring, you know it’s me.”
The NFL had a vested interest in helping reshape Ray Lewis’ image after his Atlanta murder trial. The NBA needed Kobe Bryant to be a smiling pitchman again after rape charges were dropped.
Baseball isn’t moving to resuscitate Bonds. His image couldn’t be saved by “House.” He is impossible to like. A fan catches a home run ball. Bonds refuses a request to sign the ball but asks the fan to sign a release so he could use his likeness on his TV show. This is the sport’s ambassador?
Frogs, locusts, diseased cattle.
Gambling, strikes, steroids.
It’s all relative.
Embarrassment: The “Black” Sox scandal is still debated 87 years later. It has kept “Shoeless” Joe Jackson out of the Hall of Fame. Rose was never accused of throwing a game. He just gutted its integrity by betting and lying about it. The all-time hits leader was thrown out and isn’t in the Hall.
Embarrassment: Fans have learned to hate two words: collective bargaining. But nothing in the long, inglorious history of labor woes equals the cancellation of the 1994 World Series. Owners and players couldn’t figure out how to divide millions.
Embarrassment: Steroids have tainted this entire era of players. Bonds just happens to be the leader in the pharmacy. For baseball to strip him or any player of their statistics is nonsensical. What of the steroid-using pitchers Bonds homered off of? Do two druggies cancel each other out? How to determine which homers were drug-aided and which weren’t? It’s a futile exercise. But we know what steroids have done to the record book. Not players. Steroids.
Bonds says he doesn’t care what people say or think. If that were true, he wouldn’t be trying to reshape his image on TV. ESPN was only too happy to sell itself out, giving Bonds a time slot and a blank script for a weekly 30-minute soliloquy called, “Bonds on Bonds.”
My wife and I watched the other night. There was tape of Philadelphia fans booing Bonds as he stepped to the plate.
“Why are they booing him?” my wife asked. “There’s steroids in hot dogs and Babe Ruth ate those.”
My wife. Funny girl.
Bonds juiced because he was jealous. Relying on interviews, documents and grand jury testimony in the book, “Game of Shadows,” authors alleged that Bonds decided to turn to muscle drugs after witnessing the attention paid to the McGwire-Sosa home run chase in 1998.
Follow the growth. Bonds averaged 31.8 home runs from 1986 to 1999. He averaged 51.6 from 2000 to 2004, including 73 in 2001. He hit one home run every 16 at-bats in his first 14 seasons. He hit one every eight at-bats in his next five.
I know. Good hot dogs.
History views Ruth as a home run hitter. Bonds will be viewed as something far less. A lab creation.
There goes No. 715. Cover your eyes now.
Permalink | Comments (392) | Categories: Braves / MLB, Jeff Schultz
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By gotigers72
May 28, 2006 07:11 PM | Link to this
I agree that he is an embarrassment to the game. The sad thing is he would have been a Hallof Famer without the juice. He just couldn’t stand it that McGuire and Sosa were getting more attention than him. I just hope he hangs ‘em up before he reaches 755. I guess it won’t matter, everybody knows anyway. Especially me.
By BP
May 28, 2006 07:16 PM | Link to this
What else can you say??? It’s a sad day for BaseBall!! I believe even GOD covered his eyes!!! Sorry Babe!!!
By Ben T. Wood
May 28, 2006 07:28 PM | Link to this
You got this one right… Bonds is nothing but pure slime with an ego.
And Selig… he is a weasel for not having the you know what to address it…
By billy
May 28, 2006 07:30 PM | Link to this
Give me a break.
You hit 715 and then we can talk.
By gdg73
May 28, 2006 07:34 PM | Link to this
To Hell with Babe Ruth. His performance was enhanced due to the fact that he never played against the best players (No Blacks, Hispanic or other International non-caucasian players). Just like the guy said before, Bonds was HOF material before this whole steroid issue came out (early to mid 1990’s). The problem with the mostly white media that covers baseball and sports in general is that they can’t stand it when a black athlete can basically tell them to go to hell, and they physically can’t do anything about it. The sportswriter then tries their damnest to destroy the player with the mighty pen. To be honest,Bonds probably will never pass Aaron and that’s probably fine with him. Concentrate on writing some decent articles about the Falcons.
By Del
May 28, 2006 07:35 PM | Link to this
A M E N ! !
By Boomer
May 28, 2006 07:35 PM | Link to this
I agree completely with both previous bloggers. I don’t see how even Bonds can honestly be proud of the “records” he’s set. Thanks, Hank Aaron, for being such a class act. I saw the Hammer play and was excited when he broke the Babe’s record. Too bad baseball fans have been cheated out of having that feeling this time around.
By charlie
May 28, 2006 07:39 PM | Link to this
Who cares? Since when did passing the guy in second place become note worthy?
By ADRIAN
May 28, 2006 07:40 PM | Link to this
REALLY, WHO CARES WHAT MANY OF YOU THINK. BONDS IS ONE OF THE GREATEST HITTERS OF OUR GENERATION, PERIOD. FOR SCHULTZ TO SAY THAT HE EMBARRASSED BASEBALL, CLAIMING THIS AS ONE OF THE DARKESS MOMENTS IN HISTORY, IS WAY OVERBLOWN. THE FACTS ARE AS SUCH; BONDS HAS NEVER TESTED POSITIVE FOR STEROID USE. I’M A BRAVES FAN AND I HAVE NEVER HATED HIM PERSONALLY, ONLY AS AN OPPOSING FAN BECAUSE HE WAS SO FANTASTIC. WHAT IS A DISGRACE IS THE DUKE UNIVERSITY LACROSSE TEAM, OR ARE WE SUPPOSED TO DISMISS THEM FOR SOME UNKNOWN REASON. PLEASE.
By ADRIAN
May 28, 2006 07:42 PM | Link to this
REALLY, WHO CARES WHAT MANY OF YOU THINK. BONDS IS ONE OF THE GREATEST HITTERS OF OUR GENERATION, PERIOD. FOR SCHULTZ TO SAY THAT HE EMBARRASSED BASEBALL, CLAIMING THIS AS ONE OF THE DARKESS MOMENTS IN HISTORY, IS WAY OVERBLOWN. THE FACTS ARE AS SUCH; BONDS HAS NEVER TESTED POSITIVE FOR STEROID USE. I’M A BRAVES FAN AND I HAVE NEVER HATED HIM PERSONALLY, ONLY AS AN OPPOSING FAN BECAUSE HE WAS SO FANTASTIC. WHAT IS A DISGRACE IS THE DUKE UNIVERSITY LACROSSE TEAM, OR ARE WE SUPPOSED TO DISMISS THEM FOR SOME UNKNOWN REASON. PLEASE.
By ma
May 28, 2006 07:43 PM | Link to this
Yeah, you are right who cares babe ruth lost that record in 74. So what I am saying is why does people keep saying “babe’s record”? Let is die please Hank is the homer KING.
By Jonathan
May 28, 2006 07:50 PM | Link to this
Since Jesus died and made you Chief Judge my comments are just get over it. Until it is proven otherwise he is still innocent. I just wonder what was your comments when Henry Aaron apporoached and passed the last white hope the babe!
By yosh
May 28, 2006 07:56 PM | Link to this
Its too bad that in this time, that a person is determined to be guilty based on anecdotal information. It still is quite an accomplishment,no matter what.
By Brian
May 28, 2006 07:56 PM | Link to this
Alright, I am sick and tired of the race card being played in regards to Bonds. Unforturate for him he was the center of a steriods investigation. Mark McGwire and Raffe Palmerio are scum just like Bonds. Today is one of the top five black days of baseball. If he ever catches the HOME RUN KING HANK AARON (not Ruth)it will be the sadest day in baseball history. Secondly, I am tired of the commett steriods doesn’t help you hit home runs. That arguement is crap. Steroids enhances you ability to act and react, so it does help. I hope that Bonds is banned from the Hall of Fame. If he wasn’t such a jealous human being he would of been in the Hall no doubt. Barry you are not only a disgrace to baseball but to every kid learning how to play a sport.
By Mony
May 28, 2006 07:59 PM | Link to this
The Babe is “The Babe” and there won’t be another. Nuf said………..
By bob
May 28, 2006 08:00 PM | Link to this
Last time I checked, steroids don’t effect eyesight. To hit homeruns, you must first make contact. Juiced or not, he is one of the games greatest HITTERS. Maybe not the homerun king or anything, but still a damn good hitter.
By Jacob
May 28, 2006 08:03 PM | Link to this
Barry Bonds’s race didn’t make him an a*****. It also didn’t make him a liar, or a cheater. If he were to state that steriod use was his choice as a competant, adult, world-class athlete, and that baseball owes it’s late 90’s revitalization to juiced up players, and those in power knew it at the time, he’d garner far more respect than he does now for lying and whining about it every chance he gets. I just don’t by the race thing. McGwire is a joke after his testimony, as is Palmero and Canseco as a result of their antics. None of ‘em black. People could care less about Bonds’s race. We don’t like him cause he’s a a*****.
By brian
May 28, 2006 08:03 PM | Link to this
Bob,
I don’t deny that Bonds is a damn good hitter. Steroids may not affect your eyesight but you still have to swing the bat and that’s with your body…including muscles.
By Sara
May 28, 2006 08:05 PM | Link to this
It seems that writers are hostile toward Bonds. Writers that concern themselves and create all the hateful sarcastic stories have a lynch mob mentality without the rope; instead they try to use their pens to spin and destroy Bonds accomplishments.
By bob
May 28, 2006 08:06 PM | Link to this
Brian
It also doesn’t affect your ability to act and react; it just builds muscle. I’ve often heard that using steroids is unhealthy because the muscle builds too quickly for the body, resulting in a blowout or a pull. My question is: Has this ever happened to Barry? (Honestly I don’t know and that’s why I ask).
By BigWill
May 28, 2006 08:07 PM | Link to this
The sad thing about Bonds is what all those chemicals have done to his body. He can hardly run, he looks horrible at the plate and he’s shrinking! He doesn’t deserve someof his accolades but the previous blogger was right, he was HOF before he discovered the “juice”. Also, it must be pointed out, he has always brought a lot of the bad will upon himself. Even before the ‘roids, he wasn’t a pleasant person.
By ADRIAN
May 28, 2006 08:07 PM | Link to this
KUDOS TO AJC.COM FOR, ONE AGAIN, LETTING THEIR WRITERS MAKE THEM LOOK LIKE IDIOTS WITH THER ASININE COMMENTARY. THE FIRST HEADING ON THE SPORTS PAGE I SEE IS “BONDS AN EMBARRASSMENT”. WHO APPROVED THAT ARTICLE HEADER! PROBABLY THE SAME MORON WHO APPROVED EVERY NEGATIVE ARTICLE ABOUT ANY SENSATIONAL BLACK ATHLETE WHO DIDN’T PUT THEM ON A PEDESTAL. THE MEDIA, IS AND ALWAYS WILL BE, COMPLETELY FLAWED. YOU JEALOUS CLOWNS NEED TO GROW UP. MAN, I FEEL SORRY FOR PUJOLS, THINKING OF THE DEFAMATION HE’LL GO THROUGH APPROACHING THESE HOMERUN RECORDS.
By DHD
May 28, 2006 08:07 PM | Link to this
Babe Ruth won almost 100 games as a pitcher in 5 seasons. How many HRs would he have hit had he not done that?. The Babe is the greatest player of all time when you consider his total career.
By bob
May 28, 2006 08:12 PM | Link to this
DHD
Could’ve, would’ve, should’ve… The point is you can’t change history. Even if Bonds took steroids, there weren’t exactly rules against it. Point is, you can’t change history.
By Stephen
May 28, 2006 08:12 PM | Link to this
In the grand scheme of things, Barry Bonds, cheater that he may be, doesn’t matter. That said, I think its unfortunate that his 715* home run came today, on Memorial Day, when there are far more important matters we could be focusing on as a nation.
Yes, I used the asterick.:)
By Jay
May 28, 2006 08:14 PM | Link to this
Barry Bonds this, Barry Bonds that. Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.
I would like to see Jeff Schultz go out and hit at least 1 home run. Which is a snowball chance in hell. The problem with most sports writers is that they’re upset because they never even played the sport. Just come to grips with Bonds is the second minority player to break Ruth’s so-called historical record. But brace yourself Schultz, there will be another.
Nuff said
By Matt
May 28, 2006 08:15 PM | Link to this
C-H-E-A-T-E-R!!!!
Hank didn’t cheat, Bonds had to - his records will be erased b/c they really aren’t “records”. C-H-E-A-T-E-R!
Bonds would be 300 hr’s behind if it wasn’t for STEROIDS.
By Jay
May 28, 2006 08:15 PM | Link to this
Barry Bonds this, Barry Bonds that. Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.
I would like to see Jeff Schultz go out and hit at least 1 home run. Which is a snowball chance in hell. The problem with most sports writers is that they’re upset because they never even played the sport. Just come to grips with Bonds is the second minority player to break Ruth’s so-called historical record. But brace yourself Schultz, there will be another.
Nuff said
By jay
May 28, 2006 08:16 PM | Link to this
Barry Bonds this, Barry Bonds that. Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.
I would like to see Jeff Schultz go out and hit at least 1 home run. Which is a snowball chance in hell. The problem with most sports writers is that they’re upset because they never even played the sport. Just come to grips with Bonds is the second minority player to break Ruth’s so-called historical record. But brace yourself Schultz, there will be another.
Nuff said
By bob
May 28, 2006 08:16 PM | Link to this
Technically speaking, Memorial Day is MAY 30 for those of you who don’t know (established cerca 1868). It was changed to the last Monday in May (tomorrow) in 1971 so we could have a 3 day weekend.
By maya lucia
May 28, 2006 08:17 PM | Link to this
baseball?
who cares?
let’s get into some world cup soccer!!!
By ma
May 28, 2006 08:19 PM | Link to this
Yeah, you are right who cares babe ruth lost that record in 74. So what I am saying is why does people keep saying “babe’s record”? Let is die please Hank is the homer KING.
By Lorie
May 28, 2006 08:20 PM | Link to this
It is a shame that Bonds is even mentioned with the other great names. Did he not think that people would notice his sudden change in size and production? It is a very sad day, but we still have hope that he will not pass Hamerin’ Hank!
By gdg73
May 28, 2006 08:20 PM | Link to this
The “race card” could have never been played if it was never put into the deck, and that was done long ago. If everyone was looked at equally, it wouldn’t be an issue.
On another topic, look at Roger Clemens. How old is he again? He’s pitching just as good now or better than he was 20 years ago. I guess that can be attributed to “good ole clean living” down on his big a* ranch in Texas. This guy can do no wrong because he is a “media darling” therefore, he’s alright. Give me a break. Don’t p!$$ in my face and call it rain.
By Shellie
May 28, 2006 08:20 PM | Link to this
Funny, you can talk about anything you want unless that persons skin color is on the darker shade of Babe Ruth’s (whom, by the way was NOT white) - then, you get accused of being a racist. You uneducated MORONS - has nothing to do with skin color and everything to do with playing by the rules. Babe Ruth WAS NOT WHITE! At least do your homework, blackie.
By Ann in San Francisco
May 28, 2006 08:22 PM | Link to this
Babe Ruth is a baseball legend, Barry Bonds is an overgrown baby, undeserving of a page in a comic book, let alone history.
By Greene
May 28, 2006 08:22 PM | Link to this
I am a black man and hate it when people keep saying Bonds isn’t respected because he is black. Bonds isn’t respected because of the way he treats people. Of the major sports in the country, the majority of the great players are either black or of some other nationality other than white American. Pujols is one of the most respected players in the game today. When Sosa was fighting McGuire for the single season record, the nation was behind him as much as anyone. Michael Jordan with his gambling issues is the best ever for basketball. Leav race out of it with Bonds because no one has a leg to stand on with that argument. Bonds put himself in the hole that he is in as far as his reputation. He is a great hitter, but I think it will be bad for him to pass Aaron- oh wait I forgot to mention to all you folks that say Bonds keeps getting bad press cause he is black- he is chasing a black man’s record! Wake up people! The more you complain about racism that isn’t there, it makes people not want to listen to you when there is a valid complaint racism! Bonds himself has said bad things and racist remarks about other blacks in baseball, but no one has mentined that. We shouldn’t use race discussion for our own benefit. Let’s move on or we will never live in peace together. If you think Bonds is a good player, fine. If not, fine too. That’s all there is. Go Braves!!!
By Greene
May 28, 2006 08:23 PM | Link to this
I am a black man and hate it when people keep saying Bonds isn’t respected because he is black. Bonds isn’t respected because of the way he treats people. Of the major sports in the country, the majority of the great players are either black or of some other nationality other than white American. Pujols is one of the most respected players in the game today. When Sosa was fighting McGuire for the single season record, the nation was behind him as much as anyone. Michael Jordan with his gambling issues is the best ever for basketball. Leav race out of it with Bonds because no one has a leg to stand on with that argument. Bonds put himself in the hole that he is in as far as his reputation. He is a great hitter, but I think it will be bad for him to pass Aaron- oh wait I forgot to mention to all you folks that say Bonds keeps getting bad press cause he is black- he is chasing a black man’s record! Wake up people! The more you complain about racism that isn’t there, it makes people not want to listen to you when there is a valid complaint racism! Bonds himself has said bad things and racist remarks about other blacks in baseball, but no one has mentined that. We shouldn’t use race discussion for our own benefit. Let’s move on or we will never live in peace together. If you think Bonds is a good player, fine. If not, fine too. That’s all there is. Go Braves!!!
By Greene
May 28, 2006 08:23 PM | Link to this
I am a black man and hate it when people keep saying Bonds isn’t respected because he is black. Bonds isn’t respected because of the way he treats people. Of the major sports in the country, the majority of the great players are either black or of some other nationality other than white American. Pujols is one of the most respected players in the game today. When Sosa was fighting McGuire for the single season record, the nation was behind him as much as anyone. Michael Jordan with his gambling issues is the best ever for basketball. Leav race out of it with Bonds because no one has a leg to stand on with that argument. Bonds put himself in the hole that he is in as far as his reputation. He is a great hitter, but I think it will be bad for him to pass Aaron- oh wait I forgot to mention to all you folks that say Bonds keeps getting bad press cause he is black- he is chasing a black man’s record! Wake up people! The more you complain about racism that isn’t there, it makes people not want to listen to you when there is a valid complaint racism! Bonds himself has said bad things and racist remarks about other blacks in baseball, but no one has mentined that. We shouldn’t use race discussion for our own benefit. Let’s move on or we will never live in peace together. If you think Bonds is a good player, fine. If not, fine too. That’s all there is. Go Braves!!!
By Greene
May 28, 2006 08:25 PM | Link to this
I am a black man and hate it when people keep saying Bonds isn’t respected because he is black. Bonds isn’t respected because of the way he treats people. Of the major sports in the country, the majority of the great players are either black or of some other nationality other than white American. Pujols is one of the most respected players in the game today. When Sosa was fighting McGuire for the single season record, the nation was behind him as much as anyone. Michael Jordan with his gambling issues is the best ever for basketball. Leav race out of it with Bonds because no one has a leg to stand on with that argument. Bonds put himself in the hole that he is in as far as his reputation. He is a great hitter, but I think it will be bad for him to pass Aaron- oh wait I forgot to mention to all you folks that say Bonds keeps getting bad press cause he is black- he is chasing a black man’s record! Wake up people! The more you complain about racism that isn’t there, it makes people not want to listen to you when there is a valid complaint racism! Bonds himself has said bad things and racist remarks about other blacks in baseball, but no one has mentined that. We shouldn’t use race discussion for our own benefit. Let’s move on or we will never live in peace together. If you think Bonds is a good player, fine. If not, fine too. That’s all there is. Go Braves!!!
By uga4ever
May 28, 2006 08:26 PM | Link to this
The Babe was and still is baseball. He was the best pitcher in the league and the best hitter. He hit more homeruns in one year than 11 major league teams hit. Anyone involved in baseball will say that the “Babe” is king of baseball.. hands down. To BOB- hand/eye coordination is great in baseball but it takes much more than that. Hand/eye coordination is needed in any sport…so don’t use that justification please. If Barry would have walked away like Big Mac, then it would have all died down. He will not catch Hank, and he is bringing the rest of this on himself and his family. I don’t think that he is having to work to “put food on the table.” He should have walked away, and he would still be considered one of the best. Now, we can’t say the same.
By Boomer
May 28, 2006 08:26 PM | Link to this
Okay…I will certainly concede that there are people who don’t like/support Bonds because he is black. But I truly believe that the majority of baseball fans dislike him and don’t want him to pass Ruth and Aaron for other reasons. Number 1 on the list is that most believe Bonds cheated by using steroids. Most feel the same about McGuire, Sosa, Palmeiro and Giambi. The number 2 reason is that most people like their heroes to be just a little humble and a lot personable [things that Bonds has never been accused of].
By Quick
May 28, 2006 08:27 PM | Link to this
U mean to tell me,all I have to do is take a few Steroids and I will be great Hitter like Bonds>>>> Please >>> U haters of Barry need o get a life>> The Man is a great baseball player >> now live with it>> and no he is not a Great spokesperson>> but that not his Job>>> Last I check>> his job is to hit HomeRuns>> and there is only 1 person who can say they can do better than >>> Bonds>>thats Mr. Bond to U and that tried statement
By RTL
May 28, 2006 08:27 PM | Link to this
Jeff, you’re correct and will you people ever get past race. God help me that is so lame. It’s sad and sick. Worst of all if we don’t speak out now and long into the future people will forget what this is all about. It’s a sad day, not because of his race, but because he cheated. Period.
By Scott
May 28, 2006 08:29 PM | Link to this
Mr. Schultz, you need to wake up a little. Several Baseball players, minor league and major league have tested positive for steroids. Barry Bonds has never tested positive for steroids, believe me he has been tested (several times). No big deal needed to be made for breaking the second place person in the all time home run lead. That is like saying, that was wrong the way they treated Dominique when he went to number 25 on all time scoring, the person who was number 25’s family should have been there. When he breaks Hank Aaron and has never failed a steroid test administered by major league baseball. Then, yes, we shall celebrate the best hitter in baseball.
By uga4ever
May 28, 2006 08:29 PM | Link to this
The Babe was and still is baseball. He was the best pitcher in the league and the best hitter. He hit more homeruns in one year than 11 major league teams hit. Anyone involved in baseball will say that the “Babe” is king of baseball.. hands down. To BOB- hand/eye coordination is great in baseball but it takes much more than that. Hand/eye coordination is needed in any sport…so don’t use that justification please. If Barry would have walked away like Big Mac, then it would have all died down. He will not catch Hank, and he is bringing the rest of this on himself and his family. I don’t think that he is having to work to “put food on the table.” He should have walked away, and he would still be considered one of the best. Now, we can’t say the same
By uga4ever
May 28, 2006 08:31 PM | Link to this
Bottom line is- He claims that this is “killing my family” He is worth 179 million dollars (Forbes Mag.) He should have just walked away. If his family meant that much to him….. WHY?????
By Bigdawg
May 28, 2006 08:32 PM | Link to this
I would like to say you guys that are saying that Babe Ruth never played against black players is a true statement but it was not Babe Ruth’s fault however Barry Bonds knew he was taking the steriods. I have no problem with Hank Aaron being the homerun king (just in case you didn’t know Hank is BLACK) but I do have a problem with Barry being recognized as one of the two best power hitters ever when it was the steriods that made Barry a bigtime power hitter. Barry Bonds was already a great player and a good power hitter before the steriods as has already been stated on this blog a certain hall of famer but the fact of the matter is that like Mcgwire, Sosa, and Palmeiro he and countless others cheated using steriods. Hank Aaron weighed about 175 Babe Ruth weighed well there is no telling what the babe weighed but it wasn’t a muscular weight so we know that both of them were clean and hit their homeruns with God given ability instead of with a synthetic powersource. So Yes this is a bad day for baseball and if Bonds were anything but an egomaniac he would come out and say yes I cheated and I am sorry for what I have done.
By Scott
May 28, 2006 08:33 PM | Link to this
Mr. Schultz, you need to wake up a little. Several Baseball players, minor league and major league have tested positive for steroids. Barry Bonds has never tested positive for steroids, believe me he has been tested (several times). No big deal needed to be made for breaking the second place person in the all time home run lead. That is like saying, that was wrong the way they treated Dominique when he went to number 25 on all time scoring, the person who was number 25’s family should have been there. When he breaks Hank Aaron and has never failed a steroid test administered by major league baseball. Then, yes, we shall celebrate the best hitter in baseball.
By ruger13
May 28, 2006 08:34 PM | Link to this
Without taking time to get technical…steriods do enhance eyesight. Instead of posting stupid comments do a little research before you put your foot in your A**. Hank’s the king, Babe’s second and will always be. Cheat, cheat never beat.
By Don
May 28, 2006 08:38 PM | Link to this
Schultz finally gets one right. Bonds is long-time steroid cheat and a disgrace to the game.
I believe Bonds started cheating long before 1998. Take a look at the mediocre numbers he put up in his first 4 seasons: .265 batting average, about 20 home runs and 100+ strikeouts per season. His numbers took their first jump about the same time Palmeiro’s power numbers surged. Coincidence? I don’t think so. Find another great hitter in baseball history who was as ordinary for his first four full seasons as Bonds was, or find one whose power numbers jumped after four seasons like Palmeiro’s did. The greats put up big numbers almost immediately. Ruth (when he became an outfielder), Gehrig, Foxx, Williams, Dimaggio, Mantle, Mays, Aaron, Robinson, McCovey, Killebrew, Griffey Jr., A-Rod, Pujols, etc. Every one of them was putting up big numbers within a year of coming into the big leagues (allowing for years missed with injuries or in the military).
Look at Bonds’ numbers by season and it’s hard not to suspect that he started doping around 1990 and then went on to even heavier stuff around 1998. Baseball writers keep dividing Bonds’ career into 2 parts when the numbers clearly show it should be 3 parts.
I believe that without the juice Barry Bonds would have had a career about like his father’s. Good, but not Hall of Fame quality.
By t
May 28, 2006 08:40 PM | Link to this
Schultz you are a racist jerk. Get over it Bonds is better.
By Braves Fan
May 28, 2006 08:41 PM | Link to this
Some feel that any criticism of Bonds is racist. Hmmm, try getting some therapy for that misplaced anger. On the other hand it seems that many baseball fans respect and admire Aaron and Ruth because they played the game with integrity and by the rules. The same can’t be said for Bonds, who also suffers from the personality of a toad, and others of these shameful steroid years in MLB. Get over it.
By ruger13
May 28, 2006 08:42 PM | Link to this
Without taking time to get technical…steriods do enhance eyesight. Instead of posting stupid comments do a little research before you put your foot in your A**. Hank’s the king, Babe’s second and will always be. Cheat, cheat never beat.
By Dre (Atlanta)
May 28, 2006 08:47 PM | Link to this
This is just the weirdest thing. All around America everyone wants to cry out… innocent until proven gulity! Bonds has passed every test they have given him. Now, i am no saying that Bonds did not use steroids, but the truth of the matter is… there is NO SMOKING GUN to prove him gulity! NONE! All I have heard is a bunch of jealous people who hate bonds, a disgruntle mistress that didn’t get what she wanted, two reporters that saw $$$ in writing a book, and a very disgruntle media because Bonds will not act right for them that have made NOTHING but actusations! WOW! The Congress can convine anything they wish… they will never get a convication. Bud can sit in high chair like a little baby crying pretending that he is not celebrating Bonds passing Ruth all he wants… ALL OF YOU ARE HATERS! I’m not even a Bonds fan and I know this is a BUNCH OF CRAP! No one has proven anything and you have already put him in the electric chair. This is all because Bonds is BLACK and he is passing your beloved RUTHIE! This is an example of rasicm in your face! The ONLY people I heard bashing bonds are WHITE MEDIA PERSONNEL!! Bonds is playing baseball to win games for san Fran… not for you to like him. Like him or hate him… BONDS IS THE GREATEST HOME RUN HITTER OF HIS ERA! All of you just speculate (NO PROOF) that Bonds is on steroids, but steriods do not hit home runs. Yeah, yeah they bulk up your muscle mass, but do that mean you hit home runs? NO! How do any of you know if Hank Aaron wasn’t juiced? How do you know that Babe Ruth wasn’t juiced? How do you know? You don’t! There were no test done and if there were test done they passed them… guess who also passed the test??? You got it.. BONDS!
By Steve
May 28, 2006 08:47 PM | Link to this
Bonds is a pathetic example of ego gone mad, but thousands of kids will idolize him for his numbers. To hell with him. As a kid, I remember watching Hammerin’ Hank and the other sluggers of the late 60s and early 70s pound balls into the seats with what God and a strong work ethic gave them. Anybody who uses a shortcut deservres no recognition whatsoever.
Anything connected with Barry Bonds in the baseball record books should be marked with an asterisk. Or better yet, a syringe.
By gobraves06
May 28, 2006 08:52 PM | Link to this
I don’t care what anybody says, I will never recognize Bonds’ records, nor any of McGwire’s or Sosa’s. In my opinion, 61 is still the single-season home run record. And 755 will always be the all-time record in my view. Bonds does not deserve all of the attention he is getting. This is exactly what he wanted, so I say we all just ignore him and his “records.”
By jake
May 28, 2006 08:55 PM | Link to this
anyone who plays the race card in this is a* big an a** as barry is
By Jay
May 28, 2006 08:58 PM | Link to this
715*
Now go buy me a house in arizona.
By Paul
May 28, 2006 09:00 PM | Link to this
Thank you Greene for speaking the truth. I am a white man and even though i dont think Bonds deserves the home run crown, neither do i think McGuire, Sosa, Palmiero etc deserve the accolades they received at the time. It has ZERO to do with Bonds/black, Ruth/white- for GODS SAKE Ruth has been dead 50 years. Anyone who thinks i feel the way i do because of racial reasons is way off base.
By Jimmy
May 28, 2006 09:00 PM | Link to this
Hey sports writer, can you hit a fast ball coming at you at 95mph? How about a curve ball at 80 mph? Can you visually see a baseball as it leaves the pitcher hand and make the corresponding adjustments in speed and placement of the bat? Steriods will make you run faster. I’m no biochemist, but I will go out on a limb and say, I don’t believe steriods are going to improve your hand and eye coordinations. Those steroids will make you strong as an ox, but there are some things only God can bless a person with. You must dislike Barry Bonds because he has done something terribly bad to you are your family. I seriously doubt it.
By JJMB
May 28, 2006 09:03 PM | Link to this
Babe Ruth is the greatest baseball player of all time. His records speak for themselves. He completely dominated the sport as a pitcher and hitter.
Bonds, McGwire, Sosa, Palmiero, Canseco, are all abominations. They are unclean, chemically created impostors. Their achievements will always be tainted.
By BulldawgMBA
May 28, 2006 09:09 PM | Link to this
The acrimony toward Barry Bonds has nothing to do with his race. It has everything to do with his poor, self-centered, ego-centric attitude and his steroid use that has allowed him to challenge longstanding and revered homerun records. I was only 3 when Hank Aaron passed the Babe. I have the greatest respect for The Hammer’s accomplishment. He was a hard-nosed, consistent ball player. He earned his title as the Major League home run king the old fashioned way - through hard work without the assistance of steroids. I hope all the record books put a big ole ASTERISK by Barry Bonds’ name acknowleging he is a cheating, steroid enhanced freak and a really pathetic human being.
By JJMB
May 28, 2006 09:20 PM | Link to this
I meant to add Ken Caminiti. He was a great guy, generous, MVP, good friend to some people I knew….but a steroid user.
By Stacey
May 28, 2006 09:20 PM | Link to this
I am disappointed that someone who obviously used performance enhancing drugs to move onto a performance level with baseball players like Ruth, Mantle, Williams, Mays, Maris and Aaron can receive any positive credits for his general moral ineptitude. He has given another black-eye to a sport that needs players to serve as role models and inspiration to America’s youth. Blame a union, black bigotry and liberal media for this atrocity on what was once our national past-time. Should Bonds break the Aaron home run mark, I hope there is a hope out there, whether it be black, white, Japanese, latino, or any race that will lend credibility to the redord. Barry Bonds has not ! He, McGwire and Sosa were a disgrace to baseball along with some others who will eventually pay the piper.
By Dallas Fan
May 28, 2006 09:21 PM | Link to this
Barry Bonds is a cheater. He admitted he used steroids. Let’s remember “..I thought it was the clear and the cream.” That is the tip of his steroid usage and the entire era from 1995 to 2004 is suspect. Sosa, Bonds, McGwire, Paleirmo, Giambi Let’s remember one thing about Babe Ruth and the comments of a previous poster who says Ruth never played against the great African-American or Latino players. True statement, but during his era in the late 1910’s, 20’s and 30’s Ruth was the dominant player of his time. Also, Ruth’s first four years were as a pitcher and he dominated the game in such a fashion as both a hitter and pitcher, the Boston Red Sox made him an outfielder. His record as a pitcher was 94-46 with a 2.28 era and had be continued as a pitcher, most baseball historians say he would have been compared to Walter Johnson, Cy Young and other greats of that era. Think about that, Ruth changed positions in the forth year of his career and when he wasn’t pitching in 1919 for Boston, he was playing the outfield. Pete Rose has been banned from baseball for life for betting and is not eligible for the Hall of Fame. The evidence on Bonds and his steroid usage is pretty clear and if he is indicted and found guilty of tax evasion — he too should be put on the ineligible list. I didnt feel this way until I read the book and became convinced, Barry Bonds brought this on himself.
By domeOFpain
May 28, 2006 09:22 PM | Link to this
Today was a great day. I purchased the MLB package so I could catch every Giants game to see it live. 715! Now, the great Barry only looks up to Hank. Barry, you are truly one the greatest baseball players to ever grace a field.
By Steve
May 28, 2006 09:25 PM | Link to this
It’s funny how we can’t criticize Bonds for cheating because he is Black. His numbers after the age of 37 speak loud and clear. Stop hiding behind race on every issue and try looking at the facts. So, let’s get this straight. The media and fans are more upset with Bonds because he is Black than using steroids. Henry Aaron was a man of grace and character who actually holds the home run record and deserves to keep it. Aaron knows more about racism than anybody posting on this board. Barry Bonds is a disgrace to the game and has been a disgrace to fans for 20 years. Hiding behind race in this instance reflects the cowardice of this man. Racism has nothing to do with this cheat. Crying race in this issue devalues legitimate areas of where race is truly an issue. Shame on all who think Barry is being blasted by the public because of race. In case you all forgot, the man who holds the record is a Black man of great dignity. What excuses will you use when he closes in on Aaron? How about this novel concept…come up with a new excuse…this one is really old.
By titothebear
May 28, 2006 09:30 PM | Link to this
Bonds will, probably, be indicted for purgery and for income tax evasion. That he is a scumbag is already known and documented. His records, should he be proved a steroic creation, should be expunged from the record books, just as the records of cheaters in track and field are viewed to have never happened. Sosa, Palmeiro, McGwire, Canseco and every other person whose baseball achievements were steroid dependent, once it is proven, should have those achievements removed from the record books. Bonds should be an embarassment to any race, particularly the human. As for the person who said to hell with Ruth and started bellowing about a brother being mistreated, get serious fool! The year Ruth hit sixty he had more homers than most other teams. When he retired in 1935, with 714, only two other players had hit as many as three hundred. Now, it is true that many fine ballplayers, who played in the Negro Leagues, were certainly capable of playing and pitching in the American or National Leagues and they were denied because of their color. This was totally wrong but Babe Ruth only played under this policy. He did not set i!. So, the hell with you and your racist garbage! Barry Bonds has been a pariah for years. When the indictments come down he will be in total disgrace! Hank Aaron worked for everything he got in baseball. He never hit fifty homers in one season and he never took any shortcuts. He is someone who gave everything he had and his work ethic got him into the record book at the head of the homer parade. He deserves to stay there. Cheaters, once found out, need to suffer the fate they so deserve, having their inflated numbers, not reduced, but eradicated. Justice!
By SHG
May 28, 2006 09:34 PM | Link to this
Any black person that think the “white” media is out to get Barry Bonds because of his race is living a brainwashed life. Bonds is a great hitter, but he is a cheater. Plain and simple, a cheater. That has nothing to do with race. He couldn’t hold Babe or Hank’s jock strap, as a man or as a ball player. Get a grip. And grow up! There is no white conspiracy hiding behind every shadow. Only reverse racism masking itself as pride!
By domeOFpain
May 28, 2006 09:35 PM | Link to this
Think back to when Hank first broke The Babe’s record. The same racis hate was being spit at Hank. You go Barry - they can’t keep a good man down. I am proud of you in every respect. You are a complete player, hitting, base stealing, gold gloves. You are da man!
By mike
May 28, 2006 09:35 PM | Link to this
The article by Jeff Shultz is a perfect example of how the media uses their power to decide who is hero and who is not. They tried everything they could(even Congress investigated Bond’s steroid use) to discredit Barry Bonds because they knew that his breaking of Babe Ruth’s record was inevitable. So what do you do when a guy you don’t like is the best at what he does and he is on the verge of becoming the very best of all time? You write an article and you title it “Bonds 715 Embarrasses Baseball” Dark Day for Baseball”.
Future record breakers need to take note of the message that is being sent. You can break the record of a legend, but only if we like you and you do it our way.
By Sonti
May 28, 2006 09:35 PM | Link to this
Barry Bonds beat Babe Ruth’s record get over it!
By Anita
May 28, 2006 09:37 PM | Link to this
The only shameful thing that happened today is the way YOU have treated a man who has never tested postive for any steroid in his career. Mr. Bonds, I applaud you for your performance, and continue to keep your head up!!!!
By Ms. Crabtree
May 28, 2006 09:38 PM | Link to this
Bonds’ record needs an asterisk because he used steroids. Yeah, he would still have been a great hitter without them, but at the very least steroids pushed 50-100 warning-track fly ball outs into the seats to make them homers. I don’t think his other stats are tainted by steroid use (even batting average would only be slightly tainted I think) but you would have to be a fool to think steroids didn’t help him hit more homers. Even if he didn’t knowingly take steroids, he has admitted to take them unknowingly, so he is guilty at the very least of complete foolishness for not knowing what he put into his own body.
With that being said, Bonds’ records are no more tainted than Ruth’s. Sure, Ruth didn’t ask to play against only white American players, but when you are talking about historical significance you have to take that into consideration as well. I don’t think 714 should be celebrated regardless, not because Bonds is a cheater, but because it is still 2nd place. I can’t remember when I last saw people making such a big deal about 2nd place. Ruth and 714 means nothing — make a big deal when Bonds passes Aaron. Aaron’s mark is the one that matters, and the one I hope still stands when Bonds’ career is over.
By Ant
May 28, 2006 09:38 PM | Link to this
HALL OF FAME and greatest hitter of his generation, period, asterisk or whatever else you want to call it!!! It is sadly ironic how the famous phrase “it’s only cheatin if you get caught” applies to everyone EXCEPT Barry Bonds, who by the way, has never tested positive for anything and yet, continues to perform at a high level even amidst all the crap surrounding him! To all of you that call the guy scum and all these other personal attacks; that comes from some place else inside of you that you need to work on. Surly or not, he’s never raped a woman or beaten a child so get your perspectives in order. Just because of his super human feats he does not give you the right to treat him as less than a human being.
By The Truth
May 28, 2006 09:39 PM | Link to this
I’m, frankly, tired of hearing about Bonds and I’m even more tired of the over-blown publicity he has gotten on ESPN. Thank god they have finally come to their senses and taken that “Bonds on Bonds” crap off the station…a publicity stunt gone wrong. Everytime I watched an episode it only confirmed what I think about Bonds - he is a arrogant a* and a pompous P*. Throw the race card whining out the window, baseball fans would cheer Bonds if he came across as a likeable, friendly person. Pujols WILL NOT get the kind of treatment Bonds has gotten because he doesn’t bring it on himself. Anyone who denies Bonds having used steroids is obviously naieve or blind. He came into the league at 185 lbs. and look at him now: a forehead like melon and an upper body that DOES NOT come about in your late 30s from just doing some extra lifting. He is a heck of a hitter and Hall of Famer, but would not have gotten to this point without some extra juice, period.
By titothebear
May 28, 2006 09:42 PM | Link to this
jimmy,
An interesting side-effect of Human Growth Hormone, which Bonds injected himself with, is it improves eye sight.
By Boomer
May 28, 2006 09:42 PM | Link to this
To the people out there who keep saying white people are mad because Bonds passed Ruth…again, some may be. However, Henry Aaron now holds the record for most MLB homeruns and has for over 30 years. The majority of people who are “against” Bonds simply don’t want one of baseball’s crown-jewel records broken by questionable means. To me, Maris’s 61 homers is still the single-season record in light of the fact that McGuire cheated too. I don’t have anything against records being broken but I’d like to at least think it was done honestly.
By Gene
May 28, 2006 09:46 PM | Link to this
Regardless of how many homers Bonds hits, he will still enter middle age with a bloated body and knees that ache every time he moves. He will be asking himself for the rest of his steroid-shortened life if it was worth it.
By Phillyphan#1
May 28, 2006 09:47 PM | Link to this
All u racist, slow azz , wish you were atlethic losers. Do you need cheese with that whine.
By Phillyphan#1
May 28, 2006 09:50 PM | Link to this
All u racist, slow azz , wish you were atlethic losers. Do you need cheese with that whine.
By Don
May 28, 2006 09:53 PM | Link to this
Pitchers use steroids. Hundreds, if not thousands of other hitters have used steroids. None of them have come CLOSE to accomplishing what this man has done. Ty Cobb (from NE Georgia) was a complete and total racist, but that has nothing to do with his playing ability. Bonds will never win Mr. Congeniality, but that has nothing to do with how well he hits the ball. Ted Williams was as thin as they come and hit .521. He also wrote the best book on hitting available and nowhere attributed power hitting to muscle. Instead, a hitter must know the pitcher, identify the pitch as it leaves the pitcher’s hand, and put the bat on the ball. Steroids will not help your memory, knowledge, eyesight, or hand-eye coordination, all of which Barry has in extreme quantities.
The purists would have an argument if either (1) few other hitters used steroids (not true), (2) few pitchers used steroids (not true), (3) steroids improved your ability to hit (not true - even the power improvement is debated among sabermetrics experts- look it up), or (4) power numbers were stagnant over Barry’s increase in power (not true - HR numbers are up dramatically over the past 5-10 years). Unfortunately, none of these are true. Until we have conclusive evidence, not just the hearsay and speculation of reporters trying to sell a book(sorry, but they aren’t all honest either - Jeff Schultz excluded of course), everyone can get off Barry’s back.
By RTL
May 28, 2006 09:54 PM | Link to this
Jeff, you’re correct and will you people ever get past race. God help me that is so lame. It’s sad and sick. Worst of all if we don’t speak out now and long into the future people will forget what this is all about. It’s a sad day, not because of his race, but because he cheated. Period.
By BE
May 28, 2006 09:54 PM | Link to this
Bonds is not pure evil, as many folks would have you believe. That he does have a-hole tendencies is something that few, probably including himself, would deny. The fact is that he saw lesser hitters breaking records through the use of steroids. He is the greatest hitter of our generation, period. Without steroids, he would be be maybe 100-150 homers short of his current record. The bottom line is that he is the best of our time, but he (and several others) would never have had the numbers they have without the use of drugs. We all know that. He knows that. If only he could come to admit it. That is something I could definitely respect. I guess I’m just a sucker for someone that tells the truth, as painful as it may be. Everyone makes mistakes, and many break the rules at one time or another. It’s a damned shame that the cover up has eclipsed the real story: We have witnessed one of the one of the greatest that has ever playyed the game.
By Don
May 28, 2006 09:58 PM | Link to this
And another thing…since when is America so caught up on busting athletes who allegedly have used performance enhancing drugs? There is an equal amount of “evidence” on Lance Armstrong and Barry Bonds, but noone outside of Europe is calling for Lance to give up his Tour de France titles.
By War Eagle
May 28, 2006 09:59 PM | Link to this
Greene, very well written, 73, you need to journey back to school or something to take Racism 101. Why white writers kill Bonds, black, trying to break a record by Aaron, black, Bonds is a solid LOSER IN PUBLIC EYE OF BASEBALL.
By rj
May 28, 2006 09:59 PM | Link to this
I am so tired of all of the speculation surrounding an athlete who never tested positive for steriods. Bonds may not be a “fan’s” player but he did hit 715. Can you do that?
By GATECH
May 28, 2006 10:01 PM | Link to this
Man, this whole situation sucks. I personally do not like Bonds, but at the same time there has been no proof of his cheating. Bonds attitude is cocky and crap towards media - but who cares - the media are a bunch of a-holes most of the time [read Chomsky’s Manufacturing Consent].
My problem is although I dont think people should use the race card, I can’t help but see all the kind words about Hank now, just like when white people say “hey i have black friends and i am not racist”.
I do think race plays a factor, just look at how Hank got death threats and letters for passing babe. Its a fact, the media (esp white) have a fascination with babe and have trouble seeing his record passed.
So to sum it up, i think this whole mess is a big combination of things. Bonds arrogant attitude, the strong evidence (but not proven) of cheating, and a biased media.
So lets all take a chill pill, and continue to live our lives. The whole world is corrupt, look at sedan. This is just a game.
By Charlie in Miami
May 28, 2006 10:06 PM | Link to this
Totally agree wiwth Mr.Greene’s comments.
Go braves! And Long Live HANK!!
By rj
May 28, 2006 10:07 PM | Link to this
do you realize that “Shellie” ended their comment with a racist slur -> BLACKIE ? . The AJC should take more caution in what it allows to appear on its site. And who said that racism and ignorance is dead? I think that some of these comments have proved overwise.
By titothebear
May 28, 2006 10:07 PM | Link to this
By Phillyphan#1 May 28, 2006 09:47 PM | Link to this All u racist, slow azz , wish you were atlethic losers. Do you need cheese with that whine.
You are genius material! Why would any of us wish to be athletic losers? You accuse us of being racist but we are not. However, if our inclinations were of that bent, you could well be the posterboy we could point to as justification. Go back to school, get a G.E.D. or give up posting your nonsensical, ill-founded, racist garbage. Learn to spell A-t-h-l-e-t-i-c fool!
By Bruce
May 28, 2006 10:09 PM | Link to this
Just because Bonds paased the fat Beer drinker (Ruth), don’t hate on him. No drugs in the world can make you have the eye and hand coordination to hit home runs like bonds has hit. Since you media people want to say he took steroids and know so much, want you PLEASE admit he is the greatest left haded home run hitter of all time PERIOD.
By cherokee dawg
May 28, 2006 10:16 PM | Link to this
Bonds “record” makes a joke of generations of players and their legitimate record. I hope baseball allows aluminum bats as soon as Bonds passes Aaron so that his record lasts about five years. There have been plenty of jerks before in basesball - Cobb being chief - but they did not cheat. Bonds cheated. Cheaters should not stand at the top - its un-American.
By rj
May 28, 2006 10:16 PM | Link to this
…since we are on the subject of racism.. how odd is it that Jeff Schultz has referred to the day that an african-american player passed a much loved white player’s record as DARK?
By John Mayall
May 28, 2006 10:19 PM | Link to this
Strip Bonds of any record, entitlements or benefits - period!
The bum cheated - period!
And he has, by virtue of his tactless behavior, proven himself to be nothing but a spoiled and simppering child - period!
(And it’s NOT just a game - it’s about HONOR, CHARACTER and CONCERN FOR YOUTHFUL EMULATION - none of which Bonds seem to give a damn about - period!)
By JJMB
May 28, 2006 10:22 PM | Link to this
Who caught the ball? How much $$$ is it worth?
In general, American blacks with never say a bad word about an achieving black. The achieving black can be a double murderer, but the black masses will be silent if the victim is white. That is just the plain, unspoken truth.
Today the victim is Babe Ruth, and there will be no black voices raised against this modern travesty.
By titothebear
May 28, 2006 10:22 PM | Link to this
By Bruce May 28, 2006 10:09 PM | Link to this Just because Bonds paased the fat Beer drinker (Ruth), don’t hate on him. No drugs in the world can make you have the eye and hand coordination to hit home runs like bonds has hit. Since you media people want to say he took steroids and know so much, want you PLEASE admit he is the greatest left haded home run hitter of all time PERIOD.
Bruce, Get a life and join Phillyfan in remedial reading and spelling class! You two are ignorant beyond estimation. Your IQs added together could not amount to more than a dozen. How do you fools even manage to log on?
By Rufus T. Shyne
May 28, 2006 10:32 PM | Link to this
look at sedan
It’s Sudan! Sedan is a car Moron.
By Bob
May 28, 2006 10:39 PM | Link to this
At least Bruce can use a spacebar “titothebear.”
By Bob
May 28, 2006 10:45 PM | Link to this
Which one is harder you jackass? Hitting a button automatically or using some of your brain cells to spell a word. Don’t come back with some BS about how the name doesn’t fit because it does. I’d rather be stupid than be lazy. How old are you anyway? Tito the Bear?
By Barroid
May 28, 2006 10:45 PM | Link to this
Jeff, if you must know, I too closed my eyes as I hit 715 out of the park, you know, as my head has shrunk down since I quit taking ‘roids/growth hormones…to it’s normal size, it’s hard to see b/c the helmet covers my eyes!
By titothebear
May 28, 2006 10:45 PM | Link to this
By domeOFpain May 28, 2006 09:35 PM | Link to this Think back to when Hank first broke The Babe’s record. The same racis hate was being spit at Hank. You go Barry - they can’t keep a good man down. I am proud of you in every respect. You are a complete player, hitting, base stealing, gold gloves. You are da man!
Domey, You are full of undigested Taurus leavings! Hank got some hate mail from neanderthals but the situations, between Hank breaking Ruth’s record and Bonds’ theft, are completely different. Hank worked for everything he got and people know and recognize that. Bonds has purloined the number two spot from Ruth and now he seeks to rob Hank. So glad you approve of his tactics. You are Duh man!
By Tito The Bear
May 28, 2006 10:46 PM | Link to this
Just to prove my point.
By mud
May 28, 2006 10:51 PM | Link to this
idiots rule! that means all of you!
By mud
May 28, 2006 10:51 PM | Link to this
idiots rule! that means all of you!
By titothebear
May 28, 2006 10:53 PM | Link to this
By Bob
I’d rather be stupid than be lazy.
You know, Bob, i think you’re both stupid and lazy! Get back to that teenage chatroom and spare me anymore of your dullard comments.
By Bob
May 28, 2006 10:53 PM | Link to this
On another note, there is this thing called libel. Libel is basically printing something defaming in a newspaper that is unfounded or untrue in an attempt to hurt one’s image, mojo, etc. My question is: Why hasn’t Barry sued basically every media outlet for printing unfounded and one-sided stories about him. The law says that since Barry has means to clear his name (i.e. a press conference) he must do so. I would guess that if after that point the libel is to continue, he’d have a great case.
By titothebear
May 28, 2006 10:58 PM | Link to this
Bob,
One can’t sue for libel if what is being said is true! In Bonds’ case, he doesn’t have any grounds for a libel suit and you will never hear a peep out of him about it. Get a life Bob!
By Bob
May 28, 2006 10:58 PM | Link to this
Wow! titothebear is so original that he accuses me of being a teenager, when in fact he’s the one that uses a teenage tactic of repeating an insult previously used on him. Real mature.
By Bob
May 28, 2006 11:01 PM | Link to this
Where’s the evidence? Where is the syringe and/or cream? Where are the smoking guns? Grand jury testimony can only go so far, and what we know from that is what the media tells us. Have you read Barry’s testimony or do you just watch the news?
By Lauren
May 28, 2006 11:01 PM | Link to this
Growing up in Atlanta, Hank Aaron’s accomplishments are sentimental and irreplacable. It saddens me that Barry Bonds lacks the class to truly back up his “accomplishments.” I only hope that baseball upholds the integrity of the Hall of Fame and seriously considers the ramifications of inducting Bonds. It would be an insult to those who paved the way for him to even be able to play the game.
By Bob
May 28, 2006 11:04 PM | Link to this
If Hank can get to 755 clean (for all we know), why can’t anyone believe that Barry got to 715 clean? It’s happened once and it can happen again. That is called a precedent.
By titothebear
May 28, 2006 11:07 PM | Link to this
Bob,
Whether you are a teenager or an old geezer makes no difference Bob. Whatever your age, you are intellectually inferior and disgustingly immature. Your irrational defense of Bonds flies in the face of all the evidence against him. So, you must have an agenda that does not take facts into consideration. However, you will be forced to when he’ indicted and frog-marched into court to answer for lying to the grand jury and for income tax evasion. If found guilty of his crimes, and if the investigation undertaken by baseball concludes he’s been a steroid user for years, then his records from the point he began using should be expunged. Much as your ignorance should be expunged from tyhis blog!
By Lauren
May 28, 2006 11:10 PM | Link to this
titothebear…wow. I mean really, wow.
By ismellsteroids
May 28, 2006 11:13 PM | Link to this
MAY 28, 2006…. BARRY BONDS SUCKS! I SMELL STEROIDS! HE NEVER EVER BEAT ANY RECORD OF ANY KIND. HE IS NO FUTURE HALL OF FAMER, OR ANY PLAYER WHO DESERVES ANY CREDIT! HE NEVER WILL IN MY EYES, AND INCLUDING MOST OF THE BAY AREA/EAST BAY EYES BE ANYBODY, ANYTHING, WHAT A STEROID LOSER.
I AM SO SICK OF THIS LOSER’S RACE. HUH…715! HUH… HOW IS BARRY GONNA FEEL WHEN A LOSING STEROID CHEATER BEATS HIS RECORD NOW???? huh????? IS BARRY GOING TO CRY ON BONDS AND BONDS? AT LEAST SOME OF THE STEROID USERS CAME CLEAN, BUT BARRY AND HIS EGOTISTICAL ATTITUDE WILL NEVER COME CLEAN. HE IS A BIG FAT LOSER! HE NEEDS TO RETIRE NOW, AND GIVE UP. BABE RUTH WILL ALWAYS BE ALIVE! BABE’S RECORD STILL STANDS BEHIND HANK AARON.
I SMELL STEROIDS HERE! I HATE THE GUY. SORRY GIANTS.
IF YOU WANT YOUR VOICE MORE KNOWN> GO TO: http://loadedmouth.com/node/2580#commentPHPSESSID=faa6e3726819798f4…
By ismellsteroids
May 28, 2006 11:14 PM | Link to this
MAY 28, 2006…. BARRY BONDS SUCKS! I SMELL STEROIDS! HE NEVER EVER BEAT ANY RECORD OF ANY KIND. HE IS NO FUTURE HALL OF FAMER, OR ANY PLAYER WHO DESERVES ANY CREDIT! HE NEVER WILL IN MY EYES, AND INCLUDING MOST OF THE BAY AREA/EAST BAY EYES BE ANYBODY, ANYTHING, WHAT A STEROID LOSER.
I AM SO SICK OF THIS LOSER’S RACE. HUH…715! HUH… HOW IS BARRY GONNA FEEL WHEN A LOSING STEROID CHEATER BEATS HIS RECORD NOW???? huh????? IS BARRY GOING TO CRY ON BONDS AND BONDS? AT LEAST SOME OF THE STEROID USERS CAME CLEAN, BUT BARRY AND HIS EGOTISTICAL ATTITUDE WILL NEVER COME CLEAN. HE IS A BIG FAT LOSER! HE NEEDS TO RETIRE NOW, AND GIVE UP. BABE RUTH WILL ALWAYS BE ALIVE! BABE’S RECORD STILL STANDS BEHIND HANK AARON.
I SMELL STEROIDS HERE! I HATE THE GUY. SORRY GIANTS.
IF YOU WANT YOUR VOICE MORE KNOWN> GO TO: http://loadedmouth.com/node/2580#commentPHPSESSID=faa6e3726819798f4…
By Bob
May 28, 2006 11:14 PM | Link to this
Ignorant? And you claim to know all, then? Of course I’m ignorant of Barry’s steroid use. EVERYONE IS BECAUSE WE AREN’T BARRY BONDS. What are the facts then Mister “I am the genius you are not.” Give me a post with all the facts and maybe I’ll stop posting on “tyhis” subject. Be sure to include how he lied and how he lied to the jury. I don’t want to be “ignorant.” Tell me your facts.
By the way, don’t insult me in your next post. Be a man and prove your point that Barry is guilty. Don’t come at me with immature BS. You say I’m ignorant of the facts, so prove it or get your head out of your a* with your high and mighty BS and come back down to earth.
By ismellsteroids
May 28, 2006 11:14 PM | Link to this
MAY 28, 2006…. BARRY BONDS SUCKS! I SMELL STEROIDS! HE NEVER EVER BEAT ANY RECORD OF ANY KIND. HE IS NO FUTURE HALL OF FAMER, OR ANY PLAYER WHO DESERVES ANY CREDIT! HE NEVER WILL IN MY EYES, AND INCLUDING MOST OF THE BAY AREA/EAST BAY EYES BE ANYBODY, ANYTHING, WHAT A STEROID LOSER.
I AM SO SICK OF THIS LOSER’S RACE. HUH…715! HUH… HOW IS BARRY GONNA FEEL WHEN A LOSING STEROID CHEATER BEATS HIS RECORD NOW???? huh????? IS BARRY GOING TO CRY ON BONDS AND BONDS? AT LEAST SOME OF THE STEROID USERS CAME CLEAN, BUT BARRY AND HIS EGOTISTICAL ATTITUDE WILL NEVER COME CLEAN. HE IS A BIG FAT LOSER! HE NEEDS TO RETIRE NOW, AND GIVE UP. BABE RUTH WILL ALWAYS BE ALIVE! BABE’S RECORD STILL STANDS BEHIND HANK AARON.
I SMELL STEROIDS HERE! I HATE THE GUY. SORRY GIANTS.
IF YOU WANT YOUR VOICE MORE KNOWN> GO TO: http://loadedmouth.com/node/2580#commentPHPSESSID=faa6e3726819798f4…
By Adam
May 28, 2006 11:15 PM | Link to this
What most folks - especially writers - seem to forget is that MLB is an accessory to Bonds and every other player’s ‘enhancement’ during this era. Selig can pray Pujols will knock Barry off 73, and that Barry’s body will fall apart before he passes Aaron, but everyone should remember that for years everyone, including management and the commissioners office and the sportswriters and even most fans, knew that players were juicing. But they were hitting home runs, and in the wake of the strike people liked home runs, so Selig and his cronies let it slide. Technically, nobody did anything illegal. At least according to the contracts.
Whatever the case, Bonds was a Hall of Famer long before his head started to inflate - literally and figuratively. He was a shoe-in for 500 to 600 home runs by 1998; he stole bases; hit for average; played a decent left field (except on the Sid Bream play); and always had one of the best eyes in the majors - before the Moneyball era of OBP. Bonds is a great hitter and, like him or not, a Hall of Famer.
But most important is what some earlier bloggers flagged: if Bonds is a cheater, how do we reconcile the celebration of any so-called Major Leaguers before baseball integrated in the 1940s? There’s nothing inconspicuous about not only forgetting the Babe’s faults, but also forgetting he never played with the great Negro Leaguers of his day. Talk about revisionist history. If anyone got cheated, it was Josh Gibson - the man who easily shatters all of these home run marks long before anyone heard of Aaron Or Bonds.
By THEMOMMA
May 28, 2006 11:26 PM | Link to this
I am going make many here angry but oh well.QUIT HATING!!! I for one am glad Barry Bonds passed the Babe. This hating on Mr Bonds is just sickening, get over it, already!!!
By dave
May 28, 2006 11:27 PM | Link to this
Does anyone else skip over the comments typed in all caps?
To me it’s like praising a drug dealer for being rich. Who cares how he got money, as long as he’s got the money.
I wouldn’t want a record that is tainted.
By RTL
May 28, 2006 11:28 PM | Link to this
Hand eye doesn’t get the ball out of the park. Steroids do. Enough said. Stop te racist crap.
By KnockItOff
May 28, 2006 11:29 PM | Link to this
A record, (as far as sports is concerned) is defined as “an extreme attainment; the best (or worst) performance ever attested”. Now we ARE debating the home run record chase right?? So why are we so caught up on the Babe’s “record” when it is no such thing. (Last time I checked, second place is not a revered position in sports). The RECORD belongs to Hank Aaron. If and when Barry passes Hank’s record then get we can get our shorts in a twist. Until then, cool the rhetoric.
Or am I missing something???
By Jimmy
May 28, 2006 11:31 PM | Link to this
titothebear,
improved eye sight does not give some one good hand eye coordination.
By THEMOMMAisignorant
May 28, 2006 11:38 PM | Link to this
Yeah, quit hating. No wut Im sayin yo! Word, dog. Wut wut.
By rlp
May 28, 2006 11:40 PM | Link to this
When was Bond suspended for steroids - did I miss that article? Hummm… I would put an asterisk beside the Babe’s name - he played in small ball parks - did not play against the best players - and a drunk…
Someone send me an article where Bonds was charged with anything illegal.
By Brooks
May 28, 2006 11:42 PM | Link to this
Plain and simple, Bonds is a cheat and an embarresment to the game of baseball. Personally I can’t stand to look at the guy. I don’t have one ounce of respect for a man who is a cheat on the field and off. I hope he never breaks the record of a great man and role model, Mr. Aaron. Barry Bonds has gotten so used to lying that he probably believes he is telling the truth. I remember the days of the “Murph” when hitting 35 homers was huge. Now you hit 35 and you are average. Baseball has become so tainted, that drug users are glorified and put on a pedestal for as though they have competed honestly and truthfully. I used to be a huge fan of Rafael Palmeiro. I always thought he was one of the most underrated players around. Now he is just like Bonds, a big fraud and liar. The day Bonds breaks the record is going to be a sad day indeed.
By Ivan St. Thomas
May 28, 2006 11:43 PM | Link to this
Dark days in history, lets recall a few. Pearl Harbor. September 11. April 4, 1968. Barry Bonds hits 715? NOT! That doesn’t even qualify, nor is it in the same league. Get a grip. Quit hating the player. Start haing the game, if you must hate. Theres no drug on earth that will make it possible for anyone to hit a baseball with a bat. If there was such a drug, I’d take it, then I’ll be getting paid for winning games. Ability makes it possible to hit that speeding white projectile with a piece of wood. If you don’t think that is true, try it for yourself. I’ll bet dollars to a doughnut hole that you will miss more than you will connect. Then it won’t be a home run. One more thing. Not everyone that is in the Hall of Fame is of sterling character. Look at Ty Cobb, probably the most despised player ever inducted into Cooperstown. What got him there was ABILITY.
By Fred
May 28, 2006 11:55 PM | Link to this
Everyone is making valid points. I’ve got a few.
Who cares about making a big fuss about 715? It still isn’t THE record. When/if he gets to 750, we can start talking about Bonds.
Bonds was always good, but his attitude has made him an enemy to fans and media everywhere but San Fran. That alone takes some of the flare off of anything he does.
Steroids may give you strength, but they won’t help you hit a baseball. That is the hardest thing to do. But unless everyone gets tested, we can’t accuse him without knowing (for certain).
By Eric Nelson
May 28, 2006 11:56 PM | Link to this
The real crime here is having to explain to your 8 year old son why Barry cheated.
Do recall, that in the grand jury testimony Barry testified that he “never knowingly took steroids” and NEVER claimed he didn’t do them. He took the cream and the clear, which baseball does not test for to this day!
Now, the greatest crime of all is when you finally connect the deaths of Lyle Alzado, Mike Webster, Ken Caminiti and Kirby Puckett to steroids.
Young men all who ballooned and died an early death due to steroids.
All but Puckett admitted use, and if you recall his wife beating days and violence, thankfully that is over.
By Fred
May 28, 2006 11:58 PM | Link to this
Everyone is making valid points. I’ve got a few.
Who cares about making a big fuss about 715? It still isn’t THE record. When/if he gets to 750, we can start talking about Bonds.
Bonds was always good, but his attitude has made him an enemy to fans and media everywhere but San Fran. That alone takes some of the flare off of anything he does.
Steroids may give you strength, but they won’t help you hit a baseball. That is the hardest thing to do. But unless everyone gets tested, we can’t accuse him without knowing (for certain).
By titothebear
May 28, 2006 11:58 PM | Link to this
Bob, Bonds was granted immunity to appear before the Grand Jury. All he had to do was tell the truth. He could have availed himself of his fifth amendment rights but he didn’t want to do that because it would have appeared to have something to hide. Instead, Bonds opted to try changing the subject and giving incomplete answers. When asked, point-blank, if he’d taken steroids he said he had not so far as he knew. He did admit to having used a substance called The Cream, which he said his trainer identified as an arthritic balm. He also admitted to having used, orally, a substance he thought to be flax seed oil, called The Clear. These two items are steroids and he obtained them from Victor Conte of the Bay Area laboratory Co-operative (BALCO) When Federal agents raided BALCO, Victor Conte told them, for three plus hours, about athletes doping habits. One of those he dropped a dime on was Bonds. Conte had his doping schedule there and results of urine tests done for him. Bonds usually sent Greg Andersom, his trainer, to get the stuff but he did go there on occasion himself. Bonds promoted a bogus product Conte had come up with to camouflage his true enterprise-steroid sales. Conte testified to all this before the Grand Jury convened to determine whether Bonds is guilty of perjury. Bonds’ former girlfriend, Tiffany Bell, testified before this same Grand Jury and she told them Bonds not only admitted his useage to her, he injected himself in her presence. Now, the question before the Grand Jury is not whether Bonds used. he definitely used. he admitted that before the last GJ. What this Grand Jury is investigating is, did he lie under oath about knowing he was using steroids. The evidence has shown that he did and an indictment may render his pursuit of Hank at an end. Tiffany Bell has also testified that Bonds funneled cash, from memorabilia shows, to her without claiming it on his income taxes. Now, Bonds was married, to his present wife, during his affair with Bell so it’s understandable he didn’t want his wife to catch him. It’s still illegal! Expect an indictment soon!
By Dan in Augusta
May 29, 2006 12:00 AM | Link to this
If Mr. Bonds had any class, he would have retired last season. I agree with you Schultz…..a dark time for the “Game.” I grew up in Detroit watching players with class like Al Kaline, rooting for Willie Horton. There was no white, black problems for true baseball fans. The only stimulant was the case of Pepsi Denny McLain drank every day. In 1992, we moved to Atlanta and my family fell in love with the Braves. My two daughters went baseball card crazy in 1993. Then 1994 came along and “big business” ruined the game for us. We watched and attended less and less….now we don’t even bother………..The game will never be the same again. It’s not worth following people like Bonds or any of the other spoiled rich participants of what used to be “America’s game” with the “boys of summer.”
By mdbatl
May 29, 2006 12:03 AM | Link to this
Hank Aaron and Babe Ruth were both class acts. The argument could be made that Aaron’s records aren’t legit because he played more games than Babe. The argument could be made the Babe’s records aren’t legit because he played in an all-white league. The fact is, neither of them used steroids. Hank put up with so much, and his record will always be revered. Babe Ruth was easily one of the nicest players (to kids) ever to put on a baseball uniform. Bonds has none of the accolades that Babe and Hank have. He has an antagonistic personality and clear evidence of steroid use against him. Race, the skill of his opposition, etc. does not matter. Bonds never deserves mention with Hank Aaron and Babe Ruth.
By Bob
May 29, 2006 12:13 AM | Link to this
Tito
Where did you find this on the internet? I’m not questioning it. I respect you for at least manning up, but how can you find this? I was aware of most of this, but the exact details send me for a loop. It is too detailed to be coming from an average Joe and you somehow know everything about the new grand jury.
I going out on a limb and suggest that you might be Jeff Schultz. You write too well and are too persistant (at late hours of the night I might add). You know some of the inside information that I’ve never heard before, and while it might be trivial I question how the common person would know this.
If you aren’t I’m sorry for the accusation, but at least you post things with some shred of evidence. Staff writers at the ajc don’t even use this tatic, so maybe you are in line for a new job.
By professor
May 29, 2006 12:15 AM | Link to this
Let he who is without sin cast the first stone at Bonds. His accomplishments should not be slighted. People are passing judgment based upon assumptions, hearsay, and no proof.
But, for whatever reason, many choose to minimize his success. Stop hating and start congratulating.
By Willie Jones
May 29, 2006 12:17 AM | Link to this
Adrian you are an EMBARRASSMENT to the Black Race. I’m Black and people like you make us all look bad. BONDS SUCKS STEROIDS! I’m Black he’s Black “SO WHAT?” Hanks Black!BONd CHEATS, HANK DIDN’t. My Race has nothing to do with it .” Bonds will never be a Hank AAron.”
By old timer
May 29, 2006 12:20 AM | Link to this
When marginal players started using steroids to either make it to the Big Leagues or become semi stars, I wondered what would happen if a really great player used steroids. With Bonds, we found out. He bacame the best hitter of all time. Obviously, as some have pointed out, you have to have the tools, including incredible hand-eye coordination, to hit a baseball. But all of the players in the Major Leagues do. To deny steroids have a huge impact on numbers is ridiculous. Steroids push warning-track shots out of the park. So how many more home runs would Aaron have had if he’d used steroids? I think he would have averaged, AVERAGED, 60 to 70 a year.
By Eric Nelson
May 29, 2006 12:21 AM | Link to this
I must say that absudity of claiming there is no evidence on Bonds makes most of you not credible.
The evidence is clear, compelling and unavoidable.
Get the grand jury testimony from 2003.
Bonds, Sheffield and Giambi confessed to using. Each had Greg Anderson as their trainer (recall that he did 3 months for steroid drug trafficking?) and he has known every detail of what these 3 players took and put into their body.
Bonds confessed/claimed he did not know what the cream and the clear were (yeah, right!) and his mistress gave SWORN testimony that not only did he use, he beat her and strangled her.
She gave remarkable detail of his use, pimples on his back, surly all the time, baldness and quick recovery for working out more.
He hit 31.8 homers from 1986-1999, and suddenly 51.6 from 2000 to 2004??????????
Nice try guys, at long last he is likely off the juice now and of course his play is now like that of a 42 year old.
By Bob
May 29, 2006 12:21 AM | Link to this
That doesn’t change the fact that I still think Barry is deserving. It’s like NASCAR. You can’t implement rules today and make them apply to the decades before. That’s like me saying I’m going to fine you if you wear a pink shirt. You might say, “Thank the Lord I stopped wearing pink years ago.” How would you feel if I fined you anyway for wearing pink years ago?
Maybe that’s a bad example, but the message should be clear. If there are no rules against it, why not do it? We celebrate pioneers in cheating in other sports like NASCAR because they were innovative and ahead of their time. The pioneers of NASCAR made moonshine runs at night to make money, and often doctored their cars, too. If he is innocent, great job Barry. If he is guilty, great job: you were ahead of the curve.
By Ga Liberal
May 29, 2006 12:31 AM | Link to this
Who the hell does this a** think he is? The Great Beholder of all things perfect and imperfect for baseball? Face facts, baseball is big business like GM or Wal-Mart. This isn’t some great American pasttime where people play for food money just because they love the game. It’s BIG BUSINESS, get it. The players have a RIGHT -YES RIGHT- to get the most money for their labor. All it takes is one bad minute and your career’s over. Next thing you know you’re hocking George Foreman Grills door-to-door or the hitting coach for some single-A farm team. The baseball owners want to retain their monopoly over team ownership and maximize profits by denying players have rights and not paying what they should. As for Barry Bonds, he continues to play because he draws in the people. That makes the owner happy and makes the MLB team owners happy, and makes MLB happy. Like I said BIG BUSINESS. Even Babe Ruth should have retired years earlier, but he was played for the same reasons - he was the draw. Berry Bonds hitting 715 or even 815 home runs only means something to little minds like Jeff Schultz; to everyone else it’s another meaningless sport stat that has nothing to do with real life. If Jeff Schultz wants me to cover my eyes because Bonds hit another homer, I want him to cover his mouth. He’s about BIG BUSINESS too; like the game about which he rants.
By Ga Liberal
May 29, 2006 12:33 AM | Link to this
Who the hell does this a** think he is? The Great Beholder of all things perfect and imperfect for baseball? Face facts, baseball is big business like GM or Wal-Mart. This isn’t some great American pasttime where people play for food money just because they love the game. It’s BIG BUSINESS, get it. The players have a RIGHT -YES RIGHT- to get the most money for their labor. All it takes is one bad minute and your career’s over. Next thing you know you’re hocking George Foreman Grills door-to-door or the hitting coach for some single-A farm team. The baseball owners want to retain their monopoly over team ownership and maximize profits by denying players have rights and not paying what they should. As for Barry Bonds, he continues to play because he draws in the people. That makes the owner happy and makes the MLB team owners happy, and makes MLB happy. Like I said BIG BUSINESS. Even Babe Ruth should have retired years earlier, but he was played for the same reasons - he was the draw. Berry Bonds hitting 715 or even 815 home runs only means something to little minds like Jeff Schultz; to everyone else it’s another meaningless sport stat that has nothing to do with real life. If Jeff Schultz wants me to cover my eyes because Bonds hit another homer, I want him to cover his mouth. He’s about BIG BUSINESS too; like the game about which he rants.
By Truth
May 29, 2006 12:46 AM | Link to this
Bond this, Bonds that, I remember after 9-11 for two weeks we were together and all Americans, seems it may take another 9-11 to focus us and stop this whining over unresolved personal childhood issues.
By RIP
May 29, 2006 12:47 AM | Link to this
Bob so its ok to cheat if you are ahead of the curve? Its ok to cheat in school if you don,t get caught because your teacher might have threw you a curve. Cheating is wrong you can’t justify it. I bet if you had been on O J,s jury you would have also let him walk. Is this what you teach you Kids?
By RIP
May 29, 2006 12:47 AM | Link to this
Bob so its ok to cheat if you are ahead of the curve? Its ok to cheat in school if you don,t get caught because your teacher might have threw you a curve. Cheating is wrong you can’t justify it. I bet if you had been on O J,s jury you would have also let him walk. Is this what you teach your Kids?
By James Avant
May 29, 2006 12:50 AM | Link to this
He hits it high, he hits it deep. Out of here, for the greatest left-hand hitter of all time. In your face, haters.
By Ruth's Ghost
May 29, 2006 01:10 AM | Link to this
Greatest “left-hand” hitter of all time? The correct way to say this is “left-handed”, but obviously such a blind supporter of Bonds would not know the difference. As for your assertion that he is the best left-handed hitter of all time, perhaps you should consult an almanac to check the stats. I hit 714 homeruns in about 900 fewer at-bats than Bonds. My batting average is over 40 points higher. My slugging percentage is higher, and I drove in more runs. I played most of my home games in THE HOUSE I F*ING BUILT. Does anybody call that corporate-sponsored craphouse in San Francisco The House that Bonds Built? 487 feet to the center field wall in Yankee Stadium while I was playing. 350 feet down the line in right field en mi casa (What can I say? I loved Latin women so I was bound to learn some Spanish eventually). Stop shooting off at the mouth. Leave the “shooting” up to Barry.
The game may not have been integrated, but expansion has diluted the quality of pitching in today’s game. If I would have had access to steroids, I would have hit 1200+ homeruns. Of course, I would have had to lay off the hot dogs and liquor. And cigars. Man, those Cubans were fantastic. Could Barry play like I did while drinking like a fish, eating like Henry VIII, and scoring like Casanova? F* NO! Oh, I was also a great pitcher before someone noticed I had a great bat and moved me to the outfield. Something like a 0.77 ERA in the World Series. Yeah, I actually won the Series. Many times. Steroids don’t win championships. Long live ME!
By James
May 29, 2006 01:13 AM | Link to this
Why is it a dark day in Baseball ? Because Barry Bond’s is Black. If it had been Mark Mcgwire that broke the Babe’s record it would have been a great clear day for Baseball right.
By James Avant
May 29, 2006 01:22 AM | Link to this
More records in baseball history, have been set with guys on amphetamines, including Charley Hustle 4256 hits, most with enhancers. The who’s who of baseball from the 50’s through 2002 did speed. Nobody cared, it was illegal. Peter Gammons said 40% of ball player’s did steroids. Nobody cared, until Barry Bonds put numbers up to suggest, he is the best of all time. Now the white media cares. What a bunch of hypocrites.
By morons shouldn't procreate
May 29, 2006 01:22 AM | Link to this
Why is this becoming a race issue? The fact of the matter is that Bonds is a very unpleasant person. Ah, who am I kidding? He’s an arrogant jerk who has no regard for anyone other than himself. Race has nothing to do with him being hated by most of the nation. He’s an a*****, and that’s why nobody in their right mind wanted to see him pass Ruth. And if you honestly believe he transformed his body in his late 30s without some unnatural help, you are clueless. Testosterone starts declining in the 20s, making it more difficult to build muscle mass, especially the magnitude of what Bonds added to his once average frame.
By Harry Balls
May 29, 2006 01:23 AM | Link to this
Look out Barry,, look out Hank AROD is on a much faster pace than either of you.
By Victor Conte
May 29, 2006 01:38 AM | Link to this
Steroids may or may not improve eyesight. They do help you turn what would be routine flyballs into homeruns, you morons. Saying that steroids don’t help you hit homeruns is kinda like saying that Viagra doesn’t help you get it up. Simply not true.
By titothebear
May 29, 2006 01:38 AM | Link to this
Bob, Here’s a starting point, http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/magazine/03/06/growth03. I’m not privy to all the information presented to the Grand Jury but there have been sustantive leaks that have come into the public domain. Your assertion that there were no rules against steroid use is fallacious. Laws against distribution and use of steroids have been in effect for a long time. Laws of the united States supercede any rules Major League Baseball may enact or, for that matter, fail to. That’s why Conte developed The Clear. It masked steroid useage so well as to make it undetectable. It, probably, would still be the case except for the actions of a track coach. He took a vial of it to track and field oversight and the hunt was on. The substance was traced back to Conte and then the raid and then, Conte’s extensive confession, with numerous names, including that of Barry Bonds. Bonds was on much more than just The Cream and The Clear though. He took Human Growth Hormone. A side-effect of HGH is it makes the jaw jut out more and the forehead takes on the appearance of our Cro-Magnon forefathers. He took insulin and Trenbolone-a steroid created to improve muscle quality in beef cattle, Modafinil-a powerful stimulant prescribed for treatment of narcolepsy, erthropoietin-an oxygen boosting drug and numerous other muscle and performance enhancers. Bonds does not want to admit to his drug useage, just as McGwire, Palmeiro, Sosa and others chose to lie to the Congressional inquisition. McGwire, Palmeiro, Sosa and others have now been revealed to be frauds of the highest echelon. The king of them all, though, is Bonds. He’s the biggest insult ever perpetrated upon baseball. One cautionary note for you. Ken Caminitti admitted his steroid use during his MVP season. He died at the age of forty-three. Bonds is now forty-one.
By Pure Baseball
May 29, 2006 01:43 AM | Link to this
Another caveat…Caminiti was using cocaine when he died. I’m sure steroids weakened his body though. I wonder if Barry even needs a cup any more? Lots of steroids lead to testicular atrophy. If there’s a lot of testosterone in the blood from ‘roid injections, then the huevos don’t have to do anything! Bye-bye gonads.
By rockones
May 29, 2006 02:20 AM | Link to this
Whether you admit it or not, this IS a race card that Barry Bonds has the right to pull. He just passed White America’s favorite son on the homerun list and is greeted with hatred and negativity just like Hank Aaron was 30 years ago. And, you know the only opinion that I hear comes from the media and that opinion has caused people in Oregon, Mississippi and corners of Oklahoma to hate a man they’ve never met. Just look at every poll on Fox, ESPN and even our beloved AJC. The choices for the responses are 1)Answer Yes if you hate Barry Bonds because he did steroids or 2) Answer No if you hate Bary Bonds because he did steroids and is a disgrace baseball. I don’t remember the same vibe when Mark McGuire was chasing Roger Maris. The media hates Bonds because he doesn’t sit in the locker room and give them answers to the same redundant questions day after day. They hate him because he’s intelligent, articulate, and he happens to be another Black man topping Babe Ruth. By the way, it’s been 30 years since Aaron became number 1 on the homerun list. Why do you emphasize breaking Babe’s numbers anyway? Because it’s Babe’s number? Because Babe represents White america? Hammerin’ Hank played his best years in Atlanta and commented that he thought the fans were coming to kill him as he trotted around 2nd base with number 715. It certainly wasn’t a black man that he feared. He was simply and heroically breaking Babe’s record. And they hated that!I have had the pleasure of watching Barry knock 450-ft shots over right field at Turner Field against the best pitching staffs the Braves ever assembled. He’s done the same against every team in the league time and time again. He is truly a great hitter and athlete with skills that transcend this era. Had this been McGuire or any other non-black or non-hispanic player, you would see ticker-tape parades and Bud Selig standing on top of home plate waiting with open arms. But today, even though no one has shown evidence of even one steroids test, you hate him and Mr. Selig is somewhere in Sheboygan watching the NHL playoffs. When and if Albert P starts to closes in on the record, let’s see how they turn on him. Congratulations to Barry for all the years of consistently hitting homeruns. Atlanta loves you, Philly loves you, Detroit loves you. I can’t say the same about Milwaukee or Seattle or Lincoln Nebraska.
By James Avant
May 29, 2006 02:25 AM | Link to this
The reason white people are mad is, there will never be another white guy, ever to hit 600 home runs again. Can’t wait till Pujols and Rodriguez passes the fat drunk, pushing in out of the top 5.
By Sonti
May 29, 2006 02:30 AM | Link to this
Well said Rockones, that what it really all about!! Haters get over it!
By TheSouthernJackAss
May 29, 2006 02:36 AM | Link to this
Bonds may have passed the Babe today, but he will never “be” the Babe!!!…
By gotigers72
May 29, 2006 02:36 AM | Link to this
There should be no talk of race here. Barry is being maligned because he used performance enhancing drugs, not because he is black and passed Ruth who was white. After all, Henry Aaron never used anything stronger than a milkshake and he is the greatest home run hitter in history. I haven’t seen anything negative posted about Henry. I’m white and pulled like heck for Henry to break Babe’s record in 1974.
Barry Bonds would have been in the HOF without the juice, probably would have between 600-650 home runs. He is a fantastic hitter. Too bad he chose to use steroids. Another black player, Gary Sheffield, basically verified that Bonds used the juice, because Sheffield worked out with him and used the same “supplements’ that Bonds did. I can’t believe the race card is being used here. There is too much evidence that Bonds did use steroids, and too much evidence that steroids do indeed help hitters hit home runs.
By the way, where is Sammy Sosa?
By Sir Stealth
May 29, 2006 02:37 AM | Link to this
The sadness of Barry Bonds’s climb up the record books has as much to do with the self-serving and self-important media coverage that we have to live with today as it does with any taint that his statistics may have due to steroids. As others have mentioned, baseball’s sacred statistics have long been tainted by issues ranging from throwing games to banning non-whites from playing.
However, the sports media has done all it could to ensure that the public at large thinks of Bonds’s accomplishments as meaningless, all to feed the debate that causes people to pay attention. Already with a vendetta against Bonds because he happens to be a jerk who doesn’t want to deal with them, they were all too happy to take all the impressiveness out of his accomplishments because he turned up his nose in the face of their self-important quest to analyze and editorialize.
When I saw Karl Ravech today on ESPN, supposedly there to play the moderating role in a group of analysts who had had experience with the game, I couldn’t believe the self-righteous way in which he condemned Bonds for hating the media (separate from any he problems he had with passing the Babe with the help of steroids). Well, the media have proven him pretty right. “Journalists” have made themselves and their distaste for Bonds’s accomplishments the story, and the sentiment has spread to the public who constantly comes into contact with this type of coverage.
In contrast, John Kruk, who has actually played the game, chose to focus on the impressiveness of Bonds’s accomplishments and talent, regardless of whether he used steroids or not. He certainly didn’t think these accomplishments are tainted just because Bonds is a d*ck.
As it turns out, I found myself with no joy or interest in Bonds passing the Babe. Part of this is because of legitimate concern for the steroids issue, the fact that Bonds is in fact a self-centered jerk, and the fact that as a Braves fan, I would like to see Aaron continue to hold the record. However, I feel like the sports media has done all it could to suck any happiness out of what Bonds is doing just because its more intersting to talk about it that way.
Jeff’s previous column, which he got even more wrong than this, also dealt with the way in which the media loves to make self-serving controversy, even at the expense of the truth or others. Fortunately, the main victim here is only Bonds, who may deserve it as much as anybody, and not three lacrosse players, their team, and their entire university. Still, I feel like a victim too, because I couldn’t help but not care or enjoy what Bonds accomplished today knowing the way that everyone will think about it, the ugly way in which it will always be regarded in baseball, and the controversy to continue.
As for me, I think the guy’s a jerk and a cheater, but I will still tell my kids that the was the greatest baseball player of my lifetime.
By KKK
May 29, 2006 02:42 AM | Link to this
Worst mistake the white man ever did, brought the black man to this country,,,had he not, Bonds wouldn’t even know what a baseball was, he would be somewhere out in the jungle swinging a club at a coconut!
By Don McJr
May 29, 2006 04:08 AM | Link to this
This article is exactly how i look at the situation. As I read it, i thought to myself: wow! this is exactly how I feel about the situation. Refreshing. Bobby Cox, Jeff F, Chipper, and the Braves seem to be able to capture more of the essence of the game. They seem to love the game and Bonds seems to love himself only.
By Don McJr
May 29, 2006 04:09 AM | Link to this
This article is exactly how i look at the situation. As I read it, i thought to myself: wow! this is exactly how I feel about the situation. Refreshing. Bobby Cox, Jeff F, Chipper, and the Braves seem to be able to capture more of the essence of the game. They seem to love the game and Bonds seems to love himself only.
By Dre (Atlanta)
May 29, 2006 04:23 AM | Link to this
All of you are idoits including Jeff Schultz for this in excusable article he just wrote. He is a hypotcirt (mispelled)! First he pounces on the Women Lacross team for displaying an innocent band while not having any indusputable proof that the Boys lacross team is innocent, at the same time he has NO proof only hear-say that Bonds is dopping. Bonds has passed every test administired by MLB. So, Jeff Schultz until you have proof, or how did you put it… some magically video tape showing Bonds dopping I find you very to be a two-faced punk that just can’t admit that YOU HAVE NO PROOF.. ONLY THEORIES! So, stop being a punk and blasting Bonds until you can show us the needle with some DNA with that magical video tape. Mr. Green, as a black man you discuss me with you comments below. You talking about Bonds getting blasted chassing Hank. Fool… Bonds was getting blasted for passing Babe Ruth! I have read serveral articles that have suggested that Bonds should not do it. All of this white media press on Bonds is nothing but racist! Bonds do not get paid for you to like him or for the media to like him. Bonds get paid the BIG millions to blast home runs like he is doing. Yes, I agree… BONDS IS A JERK! but I respect his game and until someone brings in that needle and magical tape… SHUT THE BLEEP UP AND CELEBRATE THE MAN’S ACOMPLISHMENTS! You do not have to celebrate Bonds.. just what he has done.. SMASH HOME RUNS!
By Drexel Gal
May 29, 2006 04:25 AM | Link to this
While you are hopping on the “I Hate Barry” bandwagon, remember this … then-Commissioner Bowie Kuhn did not show up for Hank Aaron’s 714th or 715th home runs in 1974. Bowie Kuhn, by the way, is the same guy who didn’t want Eddie DeBartolo in the ranks of owners because he wasn’t (in Kuhn’s parlance) “R.P.” —- for “right people” (ITALIANS, you know!). So, the defecation has been rolling downhill for decades, befroe Mr. Schultz decided to join the wide-eyed naif marching society so aptly led by Rick Reilly of “Sports Illustrated”. (Incidentally, Baldy, those Duke lacrosse players ARE innocent until PROVEN guilty).
By Jim
May 29, 2006 06:33 AM | Link to this
DRUGS vs BETTING: Neither is good for sports and neither should make it to the Hall of Fame. How can you be a Hall of Famer if your records are gained by other than your true self. If its known that Bonds took drugs than just like Rose, his records should be stripped. He says that if he did that he didn’t know. So, now your saying that you would take anything without asking thats given to you. BS
By Kevin
May 29, 2006 06:58 AM | Link to this
Now its odd when hank was tryin catch Babe ruth the AJC sportswriters were sayin hank should not pass Ruth also before he pass apr.4 1974…..And now shultz do his oh barry a embarrasin Baseball. I sorry this paper was not supported Hank when tryin pass Babe Ruth
By jack
May 29, 2006 07:16 AM | Link to this
You people need too stop, Bonds hasn’t been proven guilty yet. If you have provable evident then share it, if not stop saying things you can’t prove.
By t
May 29, 2006 07:35 AM | Link to this
Do any of you have any video of Barry Bonds taking steriods. Nope so shut your pie hole and eat crow. Jeff you and your believers are those kids that got picked last or not at all in sports. When you call out Barry Bond and other great players you feel better about yourself, and the small world you live in. P.S. Babe Ruth is nowhere close the baseball player Barry Bonds is.
By Dick
May 29, 2006 07:50 AM | Link to this
Did you ever consider how asinine columns like the one you wrote embarrass your paper?
Dick
By Eric C.
May 29, 2006 08:03 AM | Link to this
To all those claiming racism…get real. You think there is “hate” now, just wait and see what happens when/if Barry breaks Hank’s record!! I am white, and it would break my heart to see that happen, more so than seeing him hit #715. White and Black alike, most true baseball fans would find that to be a very sad day.
By thomas
May 29, 2006 08:18 AM | Link to this
when ppl think of baseball only 1 name comes to mind its not Aaron Bonds its always THE BABE plus what ppl don’t think about is that Ruth was also a pitcher for many years how many homeruns would he have hit if he played everyday
By Steve Brooks
May 29, 2006 08:18 AM | Link to this
I could not have said it better than you did. Of course, I don’t get paid to write a sports column. Baseball used to be a game of heros!! Not any longer, What has happened to our values, our concerns. I would say that in a few years no one will really care anymore about Barry Bonds. Hopefully, he will go down like all of the others that have cheated to make their mark in history. I used to love to watch Barry Bonds play ball, one of the fastest guys in BB and one of the best hitters. Go back and look at some of those old clips and then look at this “monster” today. This is not the same person!! Sad day for Baseball and for America to celebrate and hold in high esteem a cheater like this.
By Joel
May 29, 2006 08:29 AM | Link to this
It is sad to read such an article. It makes me wonder about the integrity of writers suchh as shultz; writers who are trying so hard to be recognized by villifying some sports figures. I know Bonds is not necessarily likable, but does he have to be? doe he owes us ,fans, that? I do not think so. He is who he is, and we have to take it or leave it. In addition, since when are guilty until proven innocent? Writers, like shultz, are losing their integrity as writers by doing it the easy way. Let’s say Bonds used steroids, do we know that for a fact? Do we know about other players in the league? Why not the same attack on players like Giambi. I do not want to throw in the Race card, but it sure looks like I should. Mr. Shultz, like a good writer that you should be, try to maintain your integrity by sticking to facts, not hype, leave that to the fans. As a writer, it is your job to somewhat educate by using facts, not writing an article as if you were in a sports bar like the average joe who does not have any facts to back what he is saying. Where is your integrity? Is Bonds proven guilty? Is he the only one suspected? why is he the only one targeted?
By Leslie
May 29, 2006 08:31 AM | Link to this
Great column Jeff. I agree with you totally. Bonds is an embarrassment. If Roger Marris had to have an * by his name in the record books for breaking the single season HR record in more games then I don’t understand why Bonds’ drug taking does not merrit a * by his name. He will break Aaron’s record. That day is coming soon and it will be one of the saddest days in sports in my lifetime.
By Robert H. Barron
May 29, 2006 08:42 AM | Link to this
The NFL has had steroid testing for over 15 years. Baseball’s last two commissioners failed the game more than any individual player by not insisting on similar drug-testing. The owners and their commissioner hope Bonds can be scapegoated for their failure of will and most in the press are more than glad to pile on. Why don’t the owners get most of the blame and why hasn’t Bud Selig been fired? Oh he’s the Donald Rumsfeld of baseball. Is that it?
By Rickster
May 29, 2006 08:42 AM | Link to this
Jeff Shultz is the REAL embarrassment to sports-writing in general!!!!!
By Chris
May 29, 2006 08:43 AM | Link to this
Bonds has been a classless player his entire career. My dislike for him grew when he played for Pittsburgh. Being born into the game he has no appreciation for the sport, he has never had the sense to give back to the fans. He’s cocky, arrogant and an embarrasment to baseball. To move into second place as the all time home run hitter is a disgrace, I surely hope he never makes it to 756!
By Ralph
May 29, 2006 08:44 AM | Link to this
Lets face it in our eyes or 98% of real baseball fans Bond didn’t pass the “Babe” nor will he ever pass the Babe nor will he ever pass Hank, even if he hits another 100 homer. So Mr. pathetic Barry you can take what you call 715 and stick it where the sun don’t shine. If it wasn’t ESPN doing all those stupid programs about you trying to act like a human being ,had no business promoting a a player who has being accuse of using steroid and about you which I don’t think anyone could stomach or watch. you could leave baseball tomorrow and in a couple of days baseball fans will recall your name “Now Barry who?”
By JEFF
May 29, 2006 08:45 AM | Link to this
THE EVIDENCE-
A guy goes from being a solid all around player with speed and power to being a home run-only robot
A guy’s body transforms overnight from a normal looking (if not skinny?) athlete to something looking like Popeye after he eats his spinach
A guy’s home run production goes from averaging 30-40 home runs a season in his prime to astronomical #’s in what would be his late years
A guy suddenly develops injuries right as baseball starts testing for steroids, avoids most of the tests, and then comes back and is showing a huge decrease in home run production
A guy’s training center has clearly been found to be a steroid factory and another of its clients (Sheffield) also showing uncanny changes in production
If this were a murder (yes I know it is not) we don’t necessarily have Bonds standing next to the body with a murder weapon but very few murder convictions have that. In most cases, it is just simply a compilation of massive evidence and I believe we have that (and I did not list everything above).
By Dave In Tampa
May 29, 2006 08:50 AM | Link to this
The sad thing about Barry Bonds is that he was an awesome player before the steriods. He could have easily hit 600 HR’s and people would have respected him a lot more than we do today. I guess we will find out the extent of his use in about 10 years. Remember Lyle Alzado!!!!
By Robc
May 29, 2006 08:54 AM | Link to this
I have watched Barry “play”. He is only a hitter, should only play in the AL as a DL because he has absolutly no hustle in the feild, never had, never will. He is a weasle, and like OJ he will continue to look for the real steroid user cause he did not know what the “clear and the cream” was.
By E. Lewis
May 29, 2006 08:55 AM | Link to this
You would think from some of the reaction to Bonds passing Babe Ruth that Mr. Ruth was only a couple of steps below Jesus Christ.
Even if you forgive the fact that baseball was segregated back then, which I’ll admit was not the Babe’s fault even if he did benefit from it, you would have to believe that corruption in sports was a relatively new phenomenon in order to believe ALL the hype about Babe Ruth.
Back in the day you had teams throwing World Series games, players corking bats and using other means to enhance their game, money was used to convince player to throw certain plays or games, and yes drugs and alcohol were used by players back then. What a shock!!!
I don’t know what, if any thing Babe Ruth did or benefited from. He may have been as close to 100% honest as a professional player could be. Of course, the Babe didn’t have to undergo the rigorous testing that today’s players do and he didn’t play during a time when they had the type of investigations that we now have.
Up to now Barry Bonds, who isn’t the most personable of players and doesn’t have to be, has tested negative for banned steroids. Until he actually tests positive I am going to give him the benefit of the doubt just like history is doing to Babe Ruth.
By JEFF
May 29, 2006 09:01 AM | Link to this
One other note-Bonds is clearly the ultimate criminal and one who could be convicted but he is not the only one. I even suspect (but would not have the evidence to convict) Chipper Jones whose home run production as massive around 1999 but not in other parts of his career.
As for the real victims of these crimes? They are the great power hitters of the 80’s and early 90’s such as Murphy, McGriff, Rice and Dawson whose home run #’s were great in their time but look puny compared to the last decade or so.
By domeOFpain
May 29, 2006 09:08 AM | Link to this
Can’t wait to wear my Bonds “715 T-Shirt.” I will wear it proudly. I have always been a Barry Bonds fan; because he is a great ball player, probably the single best player to ever play the game. Laugh at them Barry, you made me and many more very proud. Hate that!
By Ralph
May 29, 2006 09:12 AM | Link to this
Why are there people blaming Jeff Schultz or the AJC of what’s is a very common thing to the common baseball fan or baseball circle that Barry Bond the the incredible Hulk of Baseball and he became that way by eating his wheaties every morning….. yea right. There are some people out there that if they found a years supplies of steroids in his locker, house or back packet they would say that it was put there by people who hated Bond. The facts will come out sooner or later, That Barry Bond was taking steroids for years. So when you report what is known by everyone, even Bonds…… You have to feel sorry for Bond because he still haven’t pass the Babe…
By Barroid
May 29, 2006 09:15 AM | Link to this
For the record, Atlanta does not love me and stop speaking for entire cities when you say that. Nobody but the blind fans in SF like me. It’s going to stay that way b/c I don’t give a damn. Instead of saving baseball and myself the humiliation that is this entire season I will not retire. Infact, I expect to get my a&& booed loudly when the SF Giants stroll into the ATL.
By sgt chris hardnett
May 29, 2006 09:23 AM | Link to this
They are always showing the before and after photos of Bonds when he was in Pittsburgh and now in SF..ok cool…now when you do that, do the same for Mark McGwire when he was in Oakland and before he retired in St Louis…..see any comparisons….I’m just putting that out there for debate..My opinion is…McGwire didnt get that beefed up on weights alone…
By Blaster
May 29, 2006 09:26 AM | Link to this
The only ones that use the “race card” are the ones who defend Barroid. They seem to forget all the class players of color who far outnumber the pompous, arrogant sorts like Bonds.
By steve
May 29, 2006 09:27 AM | Link to this
Thank You Greene!!! I appreciate a clear and honest statement on this subject. The fact is Bonds is disliked because of his attitude and the way he treats others (black & white). I am a baseball fan and I do not choose my team by which has the most whites or fewist blacks on it. I do not choose my favorite players by their color either. The greatest HR hitter is Hank Aaron. At this time I would say Pulos is one of the most dangerious hitters today. When Bonds was to be traded from Pittsburgh, there was speculation he might go to the Braves. As a Braves fan, I didn’t want to see him in an Atlanta uniform. Not because he was black, but because he was not a team player. Because his attitude stunk. He was then a very good player but not a player of character or a leader, but a person out for himself. I will tell you I would take Pulos for Chipper any day. That has to do with talent not race. There is racism in the world, not just white/black, but religious, rich/poor and lots of others. Greene is right about the use of the race card, it should be used when it actually exist to improve the world. Do some people dislike Bonds because he is black? Yes, some disliked Aaron because he is black also. There will always be ignorance in the world, Bonds brought this on himself as a person. Aaron is the king and I for one hope Bonds never catches Aaron. He should never have caught another great, Willie Mayes, Bonds will never be the player Mayes was! Aaron went through an era of more racism than exist now and he approached it like the true man he still is, with class and style. I would love to spend a day with Aaron but you couldn’t pay me to spend a minute with Bonds! It has to do with class and sincerity. Go Braves
By sgt chris hardnett
May 29, 2006 09:29 AM | Link to this
AND SINCE THE SOUTHERN HALF OF THE STATE CAN’T GET ANY INK IN THIS “NEWSPAPER,” GOOD LUCK LAGRANGE BASEBALL AGAINST BLESSED TRINITY!!!!!
By JJ
May 29, 2006 09:29 AM | Link to this
Wow! What ever happened to “Due Process”? Of course, that’s never been real popular in the south, what with the lynchings in years past and all that. Consider, Mark McGuire admitted to using performance enhancing drugs (Andro) but we never hear anything about that. Bonds denies using steroids, but he has been convicted by the media using hearsay as “evidence”. Even OJ, an “alledged” double murderer, got off without so much vitriol and hate as is being evidenced by the nation’s sports writers. Why? OJ was a personable individual. Bonds clearly is not. Bonds never suffered fools well and he never liked the media. Now, it’s payback time from a group of self important individuals who have the power of the pen. What an interesting contrast that great players like John Smoltz acknowledge Bonds to be the greatest hitter they have faced yet sportswriters are wrapped around the axle about the “sanctity” of baseball’s records and are disdainful about his accomplishments. They are just paying back a guy they really don’t like, and it galls them to see him break records of gentleman like Ruth, Mays, and Aaron. Barry’s not likable, but he’s a great baseball player. Congratulations Barry!
By JJ
May 29, 2006 09:30 AM | Link to this
Wow! What ever happened to “Due Process”? Of course, that’s never been real popular in the south, what with the lynchings in years past and all that. Consider, Mark McGuire admitted to using performance enhancing drugs (Andro) but we never hear anything about that. Bonds denies using steroids, but he has been convicted by the media using hearsay as “evidence”. Even OJ, an “alledged” double murderer, got off without so much vitriol and hate as is being evidenced by the nation’s sports writers. Why? OJ was a personable individual. Bonds clearly is not. Bonds never suffered fools well and he never liked the media. Now, it’s payback time from a group of self important individuals who have the power of the pen. What an interesting contrast that great players like John Smoltz acknowledge Bonds to be the greatest hitter they have faced yet sportswriters are wrapped around the axle about the “sanctity” of baseball’s records and are disdainful about his accomplishments. They are just paying back a guy they really don’t like, and it galls them to see him break records of gentleman like Ruth, Mays, and Aaron. Barry’s not likable, but he’s a great baseball player. Congratulations Barry!
By JJ
May 29, 2006 09:34 AM | Link to this
Wow! What ever happened to “Due Process”? Of course, that’s never been real popular in the south, what with the lynchings in years past and all that. Consider, Mark McGuire admitted to using performance enhancing drugs (Andro) but we never hear anything about that. Bonds denies using steroids, but he has been convicted by the media using hearsay as “evidence”. Even OJ, an “alledged” double murderer, got off without so much vitriol and hate as is being evidenced by the nation’s sports writers. Why? OJ was a personable individual. Bonds clearly is not. Bonds never suffered fools well and he never liked the media. Now, it’s payback time from a group of self important individuals who have the power of the pen. What an interesting contrast that great players like John Smoltz acknowledge Bonds to be the greatest hitter they have faced yet sportswriters are wrapped around the axle about the “sanctity” of baseball’s records and are disdainful about his accomplishments. They are just paying back a guy they really don’t like, and it galls them to see him break records of gentleman like Ruth, Mays, and Aaron. Barry’s not likable, but he’s a great baseball player. Congratulations Barry!
By kph
May 29, 2006 09:35 AM | Link to this
To all of you racist who are using racism as an excuse as to why Barroid Bonds is being cruicified in the media as well as around water coolers all over the world you need to put that card back in the deck. It just IS NOT going to win this game for you!! You need to read the blog by Greene posted at 8:25 on May 28th. I have been a baseball fan for the past 45 years and I can tell you there is no damn way a player can go from being the size Bonds was or produce that mutch of an increase in power numbers in a two year period naturally. Bonds previous team mates have even said they knew he was on roids. I have had many heroes in the game and THE REAL HOME RUN KING MR. HENRY AARON was at the top of my list from the time I was A kid growing up in Atlanta and I can tell you without a question in my mind that Bonds couldnt hold MR. HENRY AARONS JOCK STRAP AS AN ATHLETE,GENTLEMAN OR REPRESENTATIVE OF THE GREAT GAME OF BASEBALL!!.I dont say this because Bonds is black I say it because I have watched them both play out thier carrers and it is just a fact! In case you racist didnt notice MR. HENRY AARON is also black so put that card back in the deck until the next reason that something dosent go your way comes along! FACE THE FACTS HE COULD NOT HAVE DONE THIS IF HE WASNT ON THE JUICE YOU KNOW AS WELL A I DO. IF HE DOES SET THE RECORD IT WONT COUNT BECAUSE WINNERS NEVER CHEAT AND CHEATERS NEVER WIN!!!
By Stuck in Kentucky
May 29, 2006 09:46 AM | Link to this
Dre and GDG, you two might be the biggest idiots on the planet if you believe what you have written. It is not that we are so concerned about Bonds passing Ruth, but Bonds being mentioned in the same breath as the Hammer. That possibility just irks my soul considering how big of a hero Hank is to me, a white guy who grew up in the South. Mr. Aarons accomplishments despite the tremendous adversity he faced makes what he did even more glorious. I would bet the two of you have never recieved one piece of hate mail, yet what have you accompolished. I can guess not much from the venom that you are spewing. If you cannot connect the dots and see a cheater despite his color then you are just as narrow minded as the morons who wrote those disgusting letters to Hank. If you remember during the Sosa/McGuire chase that both Sosa recieved as much support as McGuire. Why? Because people liked him, he seemed genuine at the time. Nothing wrong with being nice to people. That is why Hank is revered. He was not a jerk. Jackie Robinson rose above the adversity because he like Hank is a great man, period. Barry Bonds is not a great man. He uses the race card for convienence only. I went to school with more blacks than he did. He is whiter than I am for goodness sake. Have either of you thought exactly why Pete Rose is still banned? Because he is a jerk and the writers know it. He has shown no remorse which means he is still the arrogant jerk who bet on baseball and thought he was bigger than the game. Had he shown sincere remorse by now, the writers could change public opinion. And I believe, let me check, ummmm, yes, Pete Rose is white. White people do not defend Pete for soley being white. Plus the hair cut is repulsive, it’s hard to do. Guys let up on the “the man keeping me down” mantra and look at things for what they are. Your lives will be better in the long run. And watch, Hank will be appreciated even more because people will realize what a huge achievement he accomplished and he did it without cheating, for a bad team, during a time when some of the greatest pitchers played. Wake and smell the cream men.
By Connie Lingous
May 29, 2006 09:48 AM | Link to this
Hate blackie Jeff
By Gene
May 29, 2006 09:53 AM | Link to this
In spite of his questionable homerun statistics, does Bonds have a World Championship ring? I don’t think so. What about Ruth and Aaron?
By Benson
May 29, 2006 09:56 AM | Link to this
Barry Bonds ought to be ashamed of himself. He is a mockery of the ideal of competition, an arrogant swine, a lying piece of pond scum, and above all a cheating SOB.
F* Bonds.
By Mark
May 29, 2006 09:58 AM | Link to this
Because Tommy Glavine and his union thugs blocked player testing for “privacy” concerns, we will never know who took steroids (or amphetimines) and who didn’t. Bonds never flunked a drug test, nor did any other player in the 90’s and early 2000’s. Without testing, ALL PLAYERS ARE GUILTY AND ALL PLAYERS ARE INNOCENT. Bonds is being singled out because he is a record setter and has not kissed the ring of the almighty sports writers.
Also changes have always been made to favor hitters or pitchers over the years. Baseballs are made differently from time to time to change home run ratios. The strike zone gets expanded or contracted. The mound gets lowered after the pitching dominated 60’s. These purists need to get real on their sanctimonius integrity of the game speeches.
Bonds has 715 homers and counting and is one of the greatest players ever. A sure Hall of Famer. It is what it is….deal with it.
By gobraves06
May 29, 2006 10:00 AM | Link to this
To EVERYONE who thinks this is a racial issue: Hank Aaron is BLACK as well as Bonds! If you think we don’t want Bonds to break the record because he’s black, then you’ve had way too much to drink. We (by “we” I mean everyone who is against Bonds) are against Bonds because he cheated in the great game of baseball. He cheated because he was jealous of the attention paid to two other cheaters, and for that, all of his “records” should carry an asterisk.
By edward palmer
May 29, 2006 10:10 AM | Link to this
To all you bond haters,the man is innocent until proven guilty! So give him his props!
By JEFF
May 29, 2006 10:13 AM | Link to this
MORE EVIDENCE-
Bonds 1986-1997 (age 22-33-normally a player’s prime years)
Avg. .288 HRS/AB 1 every 16.227 AB
Bonds 1998-2006 (age 34-41-normally a player in decline)
Avg. 321 HRS/AB 1 every 8.018 AB
I suspect Bonds started getting the effects of the steroids around 1998 (but probably began using them earlier).
I challenge any of you defenders of Bonds to find another example of a player’s power doubling (literally) in his old years. Yes, Galarraga had 2-3 years of an increase in his prime but that can be clearly attributed to Colorado as his production decreased when he came to Atlanta.
By teri
May 29, 2006 10:18 AM | Link to this
I am SOOOOO proud of Barry and happy for him and his accomplishments. All you so called baseball fans who are haters of his gift…get a life! I am sure he is losing sleep and soooo worried and concerned about your thoughts. NOT!!!!
By Mark
May 29, 2006 10:20 AM | Link to this
Gaylord Perry threw spitballs and greaseballs to get into the Hall of Fame. Sutton and others were accused as well. Aren’t they cheaters too? Where’s the investigation?
What about the corked bats of the 70’s and 80’s?
Baseball has always had guys looking for an edge from the Ruth era to today. It has been treated as a minor infraction until Bonds (who, unlike others, has not actually been charged or suspended for anything by Baseball).
I don’t like or dislike Bonds, but it is obvious that he is being singled out because he is considered an outlaw by the media and by gullible fans who buy into the media b.s.
And BTW, Ruth wouldn’t hit 25 homers against today’s players. So what’s the big deal?
By JEFF
May 29, 2006 10:27 AM | Link to this
OBJECTION-
The raising of the mound, changes to the ball, and even favorable/unfavorable stadiums have altered players’ productions but these are not individual. Bonds and others using steroids is an individual adjustment which is essentially cheating.
If the government raises the speed limit from 55 to 70 this is a universal change. If one driver then drives 80 he is breaking the law. And, it does not matter if there are five other drivers driving 75 around him. And, when the cop chooses which driver to pull over, he is going to pull over the guy going 80 first.
By JJ
May 29, 2006 10:28 AM | Link to this
Wow! What ever happened to “Due Process”? Of course, that’s never been real popular in the south, what with the lynchings in years past and all that. Consider, Mark McGuire admitted to using performance enhancing drugs (Andro) but we never hear anything about that. Bonds denies using steroids, but he has been convicted by the media using hearsay as “evidence”. Even OJ, an “alledged” double murderer, got off without so much vitriol and hate as is being evidenced by the nation’s sports writers. Why? OJ was a personable individual. Bonds clearly is not. Bonds never suffered fools well and he never liked the media. Now, it’s payback time from a group of self important individuals who have the power of the pen. What an interesting contrast that great players like John Smoltz acknowledge Bonds to be the greatest hitter they have faced yet sportswriters are wrapped around the axle about the “sanctity” of baseball’s records and are disdainful about his accomplishments. They are just paying back a guy they really don’t like, and it galls them to see him break records of gentleman like Ruth, Mays, and Aaron. Barry’s not likable, but he’s a great baseball player. Congratulations Barry!
By bubba15
May 29, 2006 10:29 AM | Link to this
Awe M#T7RJCFD^%!!!!!!!aammmmm!!!!! Why is the race thing being played here. Bonds is a jerk, but probably one of the best players to play the game, and I think he would have surpassed Ruth and maybe even Aaron without the juice. The media hates Bonds the equivalently as Bonds hates them. I agree with most post that a cheater is a cheater, but in reality, Mike Schmit even said he thinks pitchers used steriods, and some players were on illegal drugs(speed)when he played before drug testing became a policy. I think some todays pictures said the same thing about other pitchers and even teammates suspected of being juiced. Nobody gains 20-30 pounds of pure muscle in the off season like Sosa, McGwire and other players. Remember Otis Nixon was juiced up on cocaine when he stole the 70+ bases in the 90’s. If baseball wanted to stop this farce, they would have put in place a strict policy like basketball and football, but the continuing strikes has disolved the fan base, and they needed the killer homeruns to bring fans back to the parks.
By Melinda
May 29, 2006 10:30 AM | Link to this
The fact that his team was not at home plate waiting for him speaks volumes to how the players feel about him. He cheated plain and simple.
By Mark
May 29, 2006 10:37 AM | Link to this
Well said, Don. The comparison between the media’s coverage of Lance Armstrong’s alleged” blood doping and his Tour de France records and Barry Bonds” alleged steroid use and his home run records is truly staggering.
One is presumed innocent and one is presumed guilty. Shameful really.
By THL
May 29, 2006 10:42 AM | Link to this
I am by no means a Barry Bonds fan but I’m curious…was it a dark day when Bonds passed Harmon Killebrew? Frank Robinson? Willie Mays!? Also, why have we always been so stuck on the number held by the second place guy? Babe Ruth saved baseball but the real number is 755. I think a darker day for baseball occurred when Josh Gibson never got a chance to play in the major leagues.
By Marty
May 29, 2006 10:43 AM | Link to this
Well, since so many racists have already turned this into a race war, where is Terrence Moore to come in and affirm that? I hated McGwire and Sosa when they were obviously cheating their way to the top. Guess what McGwire isn’t? The only reason I dislike #715 so much is the attendant coverage ad naseum. Great, so Mr. Steroids is now #2 on the all-time list. Hank Aaron is still the home run king, and as far as I’m concerned, always will be until someone who doesn’t obviously cheat passes Aaron. If Pujols continues to put up the same kinds of numbers he has been posting for 18-20 years without major injury and without a positive drug test, I guess I’ll have to accept a new home run king. I will NOT accept Bonds, however, and none of you racists who are incorrectly convinced that this is a matter of race will convince me otherwise.
By What a Jerk....
May 29, 2006 10:44 AM | Link to this
Barry Bonds is a poor excuse for a human being. At least we can change the channel when his image is thrust upon us - I feel sorry for his kids - they’re stuck with this creep and don’t have the ability to Just Say No…. given Barry’s history of mistresses, lies and abuse why doesn’t his wife wake up and file for divorce - in CA she’ll get half & maybe a chance at regaining her self respect and protecting her children from this arrogant jerk ….
By Jim J
May 29, 2006 10:44 AM | Link to this
Jeff, you are right on the money with this one. I remember sitting in Atlanta-Fulton County stadium as a kid watching Hank Aaron march toward 714. His gut was expanding, his speed had long left him. But, without the illegal drugs that this freak (Bonds) has pumped himself full of, Hank Aaron worked his old @$$ off to break the greatest record in baseball. None of his former teammates have come out to say they hate him. None of them have come out to reveal what a jerk he was. And even when racist psychos were threatening to kill him as he approached and broke the record, he still stopped to sign autographs. The Hammer did it the right way, evidenced by the service he is still able to provide to the Braves organization. If Bonds had any decency about him at all, he would retire and save the game further embarrassment. But he doesn’t, so I hope he has plenty of those big thick pads in his locker. I promise you that 90% of the pitchers in the game are still reverent enough of baseball tradition to knock this jerk on his @$$ when they face him.
By JEFF
May 29, 2006 10:45 AM | Link to this
No new thoughts JJ-you have posted this paragraph at least twice.
McGwire used Andro and his controversy will come when his HOF eligibility comes up
Bonds was probably one of the best hitters Smoltz faced but I would say that is based on his confrontations in the early 90’s rather than those in his pumped years
Due process-when I am driving down the road around the speed limit and have a car blaze by me, I do not need a court to see the guy is breaking the law.
As for the media-all I see on ESPN is positive Bonds, Bonds, Bonds today and if that is payback, I am amazed
Imagine Barry’s stats if he had behaved normally-he probably would have gotten 500 homers but would certainly not be challenging Aaron. He also would have been in the HOF easily. But, he would have not won 3 MVP’s based on stats from 2001-2003 and would be slightly better than an Eddie Murray whose career normally declined with age.
By ronald
May 29, 2006 10:46 AM | Link to this
What is going on here? What is the big deal about a man hitting a home run that doesn’t break any record. Bonds has not broken Babe Ruth’s record. Babe Ruth hasn’t held the record for over thirty years.
Personally, I do not want to see Bonds break THE record held by Hank Aaron. Hank Aaron was my boyhood baseball hero. I do not want to see Bonds break his record. I guess that makes me a racist.
By Scott
May 29, 2006 10:48 AM | Link to this
Three thoughts:
Thank goodness Ted Simmons killed the trade after he had originally agreed.
This is not a racial issue. Hank is African-American, Bonds is African-American, and it was an African-American who put the needle in Bonds. This is an issue of character!
Even NASCAR punishes cheaters!
By Andrew
May 29, 2006 10:52 AM | Link to this
Steroids might not affect eyesight, but it can turn a routine pop-up into a homerun, which many of Bonds have been. And in regards to Mark McGuire, Andro was legal at the time that he admitted taking it. So compareing the two are apples to oranges.
By Peewee
May 29, 2006 10:53 AM | Link to this
MY FONDEST HOPE IS THAT BONDS WILL GET ALL THE NEGATIVE EFFECTS OF STEROIDS ABUSE JUST AS HE HAS BENEFITED FROM THE “PERFORMANCE ENHANCEMENT”.
By Mark
May 29, 2006 10:53 AM | Link to this
JEFF, your objection/comment on universal changes to the game affecting all players doesn’t hold water to your outrage over Bonds passing the career home run mark of a guy that played 75 years ago. Are you saying that the integrity of the game allowed them to play under the same conditions with the same quality of athletes and rules? I don’t think so.
MLB made changes to encourage the increase of home runs in the late 90’s-early 2000’s, steroids or not.
Also, using your speed limit analogy, when exactly did Barry Bonds get “pulled over” for doing 80? I missed that. All I’ve seen is writers saying he did 80, when there’s no speeding ticket.
And what is your comment on Perry, Sutton, etc.?
By J-Boy
May 29, 2006 10:57 AM | Link to this
You finally got something right Jeff. If you keep writing, maybe in the next couple of years you might be right about something else.
By uga4ever
May 29, 2006 10:58 AM | Link to this
The bottom line- Barry is bringing all of this on himself. DO YOU LOVE YOUR FAMILY AND CARE ABOUT THEIR WELL BEING? Well Barry claims that all of the “suspiciousion acts” is killing his family. Barry Bonds is worth close to 200 million dollars (Forbes 05).
I don’t think that he is “working” to put food on the table. HE ONLY CAME BACK FOR SELFISH REASONS. Big Mac walked away and you don’t hear much about it. If Barry loved his family so much, why do this to them. BARRY, YOU ARE WORTH 200 MILLION DOLLARS….. GIVE YOUR FAMILY SOME PEACE. He is bringing all of this on himself. Yes, I believe he juiced up in order to “keep up” with his competition. I also believe Big Mac juiced up to “keep up” with the competition. He should have walked away. I DON’T THINK HE IS HURTING TO PAY THE BILLS AND TRYING TO PUT FOOD ON THE TABLE. IF HE WOULD HAVE WALKED AWAY….HE WOULD HAVE BEEN A FIRST BALLOT HALL OF FAMER. SORRY BARRY….YOU ARE DOING THIS TO YOURSELF!!!!!!!!!!
By the truth
May 29, 2006 11:00 AM | Link to this
It’s funny how in other papers all over America, Bonds is getting ripped, and rightfully so. He’s as guilty as O.J. And just to be classless jerks, some of you support him, because of his race. Just like you supported a known murderer. But in the ATL you can’t write anything negative about a black person because you be “hatin”. If you support someone who has clearly broken the rules, because of skin color, you prove what we all know to be true. You suffer from lack of intelligence.
By JEFF
May 29, 2006 11:01 AM | Link to this
I am glad too that Bonds never wore a Braves uniform. I am actually somewhat ashamed that Sheffield did.
BTW, the real problem with baseball is its leadership including Bud Selig (whoops am I allowed to criticize a white guy?)
How many of you remember the Braves would have been in Atlanta one year sooner if not for an a-hole used car salesman named Selig who forced a court injunction in Milwaukee that kept them there one year longer even though the Braves owner wanted the move and the Milwaukee government offered nothing to keep them there?
Baseball needs a new rebirth with a new commissioner, Bonds retiring/disappearing (as McGwire wisely did), and some kind of salary control so teams like Pittsburgh can compete on the level of New York.
By p
May 29, 2006 11:01 AM | Link to this
Ok, well, Jeff you got this one right.
I have to laugh at the racial stuff in here. Let me try to calm things down. Babe played 80 years ago. He was the best then, he’d be the best now. If he’d hit for average he could have batted .500. Ask him. Ok, then read then. He did answer that question.
Now, for the stupid argument part. Barry Bonds is playing against the best players. Yes, and the FACT is is that Barry Bonds is batting against maybe ONE black starting pitcher, Dontrell Willis, in the entire NL. So the myth that Babe didn’t play against the best doesn’t hold water. You can name 1000 old timers and the pecentage of minorities then - if there was no restrictions of players - would be the same as it is today. Heck, the Braves have no American Black players at all. So keep that crap to yourselves.
By Mark
May 29, 2006 11:06 AM | Link to this
Re: McGwire and Andro
Andro was not illegal to use at that time in MLB. Why should that affect his HOF ballot? Whether there were other substances is a different issue.
By Rick
May 29, 2006 11:08 AM | Link to this
What’s the difference between corking the bat and pumping your body full of steroids? Nothing. Both give the batter an unfair advantage, and both are cheating.
This should have been dealt with 10 years ago with Mark McGuire and Sammy Sosa, but Bud Selig, being the wuss that he is, did nothing, and let the cheating continue, as long as the bucks kept rolling in.
As far as comment that “Babe wouldn’t hit 25 home runs against todays pitchers” goes, you’re right. The same would probably apply to Hank Aaron, Ted Williams, Micky Mantle, Willie Mays, and Roger Maris, also. This is bacause most of today’s pitchers wouldn’t have been playing for the low pay that those guys received back in their day.
Those guys played because they loved and respected baseball for what is was. A great game.
I’ll take any of the “old-timers”, over any of these “me, me, me” babies playing today.
By T.J
May 29, 2006 11:12 AM | Link to this
Mr. Schultz, I noticed that among your plagues of baseball you failed to include the exclusion of black ballplayers in the “national pastime”. As far as I’m concerned any records before April 15, 1947 (Jackie Robinson’s MLB debut) are tainted. That includes ALL of the Babe’s homers. If you really want to include an asterisk, it should begin with that.
By DUKE
May 29, 2006 11:14 AM | Link to this
BARRY BONDS IS NOTHING BUT A MALE VERSION OF CYNTHIA MCKINNEY.
By JEFF (note not Jeff Schultz)
May 29, 2006 11:16 AM | Link to this
Mark,
I don’t understand your counterargument-if Bonds individually enhanced his performance, that is cheating. If players, as a whole, improve that is not cheating. Should a pitcher have refused to pitch on a raised mound or a batter refuse to hit in Coors Field? No. Refuse to use steroids-Yes!
As for Bonds speeding-irregardless of whether he has been pulled over, everybody sees him speeding and eventually a cop will pull him over.
As for Perry, his spitballs probably existed but the guilt is much harder to prove (and much less so for anything on Sutton). In some cases, criminals get away with things-he may have speeded up when no other drivers were around but then wisely slowed down when he encountered them again. Bonds, on the other hand, is driving by me like it is the autobahn.
By NRB
May 29, 2006 11:20 AM | Link to this
I am sick and tired of you sports writers villifying Barry Bonds this guy for something you cannot prove. I have a bigger problem with atheletes who throw away waste their special talent and cough up careers through the use of alcohol, smoking, ingestion of Cocain and Crack. Do we villify Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, Dwight Gooden, Steve Howe? No, but we take exception to the individual who’s goal is to sqeeze every ounce of human potetial out of their body for the purpose of being the absolute best that they can be. We critizise Barry Bonds, but yet we forgive and embrace many of our athletic heros who have failed to maximize the great talent that they have been afforded. So let’s salute Barry Bonds and his accomplishment as a living examble of what can be accomplished when man narrows the gap between what we are and what we could be. Don’t we all wish we could push back the barrier of human potential!!!!
By al
May 29, 2006 11:27 AM | Link to this
If Germany gave it’s soldiers steroids during WWII, how do we know Hank did’nt use them too.
By bondsguy
May 29, 2006 11:29 AM | Link to this
should a girl who gets breast enlargements be allowed to win Miss America? then why shouldn’t Bonds be allowed to improve his body?
By PROVE HE CHEATED OR ELSE...
May 29, 2006 11:29 AM | Link to this
PROVE Barry Bonds used steroids or else simply accept the winds of change!!! And not based on a book (how many books have been written and found to be total lies???). Why is it so hard for fans of Ruth to understand he cannot be thought of as the best because he was not allowed and/or chose not to play with the best baseball players in the Negro Leagues.
By Mark
May 29, 2006 11:34 AM | Link to this
Since we are so sure that we are able to tell statistically that someone who maintains or improves their superior performance after their “prime” years is using steroids, then why isn’t Roger Clemens presumed guilty?
The tests are in place, the only true criteria is whether players pass or fail them going FORWARD. Since there weren’t any before, it’s all speculation and innuendo.
If Bonds passes Aaron, and passes his tests in the process, congratulations to him!
By BondsFan
May 29, 2006 11:35 AM | Link to this
This all bolis down to fact vs opinion. I’d love for someone to tell me how Jeff Shultz and sportswriters like him(including the 2 who wrote the book Game of Shadows) can possibly gauge Barry Bonds’ ‘jealosy’. If I hear one more time he started taking steroids because he was jealous.. according to who? Bonds? I don’t think so. Faniaru -Wada? I don’t think so? Shultz? I don’t think so? Say what you want… the bottom line UNDENIABLE facts are these:
BASEBALL ALLTIME HOME RUN LEADERS 1- HENRY AARON 2- BARRY LAMAR BONDS 3- babe ruth
Those are the facts. They are indisputable. They cannot be refuted. LEARN TO DEAL WITH IT!! No asterik.. No opinion.. No nothing is going to change that. Babe Ruth is dead and he’s not coming back to do anything about this. Bonds’ position in history(good or bad) is cemented and cannot be changed. Think whatever you want about him.. but KNOW that he’s hit more home runs than the sainted… alcoholic.. calorically challenged.. George Herman Ruth. THAT’S FACT!!!
By Mike
May 29, 2006 11:38 AM | Link to this
If I hit 715 “then I can talk”.
Sorry…I don’t do drugs.
By p
May 29, 2006 11:41 AM | Link to this
TJ, Bonds is batting against ONE black starting pitcher in the NL. You’re argument is foolish. Babe’s stats would not be altered by facing one or two legitimate star pitchers that could not play back then. Most of the rest would have been cannon fodder like the rest of them.
It makes no difference who is playing LF, Babe hit against the best pitchers then then, Bonds is now. Except Bonds skips the best starter more often than not on his ‘rest’ days. Babe played EVERY day.
By Justin
May 29, 2006 11:44 AM | Link to this
This isn’t a criminal court. You arn’t innocent until proven guilty. It’s a nice concept for the legal system, but when the players association stonewalls evidence gathering to say nothing has been proven is pretty meaningless. The scientists who develop ways to hide these steroids are paid as much if not more than scientists trying to find a cure for cancer. Steroids have become so advanced that the only prayer we have of detecting them is a blood test. Blood tests that the players association will never agree to, even if it is for the good of the game. My fireman dad has to roll up his sleep for a blood test whenever the city asks, but a multi-million dollar athlete is to good for a needle…unless its one that injects. If Bonds really wanted to clear his name he would take a blood test, simple as that. If I had just hit 715 and people were casting shadows on my accomplishment, I would draw the blood myself…unless of course I was guilty…
By preacher
May 29, 2006 11:56 AM | Link to this
You used several items to make your point so here is one more. The character of Bud Selig should never be used as a measuring stick as to what is and what is not important in baseball go back a couple years ago dig up all your articles. As for Mr. Bonds until he is found guilty by a jury of his peers who are you are I to make comments in the negative for what is a great accomplishmnet. Remember you included applauded Mark Mcquire who we all knew was dirty. But before you respond I already know “it’s just apples and oranges now” where is the asterisk beside his breaking Mr. Maris’s record. Want happen!
By preacher
May 29, 2006 11:56 AM | Link to this
You used several items to make your point so here is one more. The character of Bud Selig should never be used as a measuring stick as to what is and what is not important in baseball go back a couple years ago dig up all your articles. As for Mr. Bonds until he is found guilty by a jury of his peers who are you are I to make comments in the negative for what is a great accomplishmnet. Remember you included applauded Mark Mcquire who we all knew was dirty. But before you respond I already know “it’s just apples and oranges now” where is the asterisk beside his breaking Mr. Maris’s record. Want happen!
By preacher
May 29, 2006 11:57 AM | Link to this
You used several items to make your point so here is one more. The character of Bud Selig should never be used as a measuring stick as to what is and what is not important in baseball go back a couple years ago dig up all your articles. As for Mr. Bonds until he is found guilty by a jury of his peers who are you are I to make comments in the negative for what is a great accomplishment. Remember you included applauded Mark Mcquire who we all knew was dirty. But before you respond I already know “it’s just apples and oranges now” where is the asterisk beside his breaking Mr. Maris’s record. Wont happen!
By preacher
May 29, 2006 11:57 AM | Link to this
You used several items to make your point so here is one more. The character of Bud Selig should never be used as a measuring stick as to what is and what is not important in baseball go back a couple years ago dig up all your articles. As for Mr. Bonds until he is found guilty by a jury of his peers who are you are I to make comments in the negative for what is a great accomplishment. Remember you included applauded Mark Mcquire who we all knew was dirty. But before you respond I already know “it’s just apples and oranges now” where is the asterisk beside his breaking Mr. Maris’s record. Wont happen!
By Zinte
May 29, 2006 11:58 AM | Link to this
Ahh, KKK has opened his uneducated middle-school dropout mouth again. He would probably be celebrating a juiced-up Mark McGwire going after Ruth/Aaron’s HR record(if he were still playing)Frankly, so would nearly everyone else. Why? Because McGwire/Sosa “saved” baseball. When McGwire was hitting those 500/600 ft moonshots NO ONE was saying/suspecting anything. Ever notice there aren’t 30,000 people watching BATTING PRACTICE anymore?(fans @Turner Field weren’t any different). He/Sosa(sadly)whored out the fans, themselves and worst of all, the game of baseball itself. Don’t hate on Bonds NOW because it’s ALL been done before. (I wonder what the Maris family has to say NOW? It won’t matter because like McGwire you’ll NEVER hear from them again). As far as 1998, we were ALL(fans,MLB, ESPN et al.) whored out by “the chase.” Don’t worry KKK, even if Blacks WEREN’T allowed in this country, it still wouldn’t change the fact guys like Caminiti, McGwire, Bret Boone and Brady Anderson were cheaters as well. Besides, you were probably one of those alleged Braves “fans” who wrote Hank Aaron a death threat in 73’/74’. Go to Hell, KKK. We(us in the LITERATE nation)have had enough of your garbage and vitriol.
By JEFF
May 29, 2006 12:00 PM | Link to this
I myself have wondered about Clemens but there are several differences:
1) His method of pitching has never changed (as opposed to Bonds who went from an all-around player to a power-only robot)
2) He showed decline in his later years (ERA’s 1998-2003 (age 36-41)-4.60, 3.70, 3.51, 4.35, 3.91)
His last 2 years 2.98 and 1.87 puzzle me but there is testing in place and perhaps it is due to the switch to the NL
3) There is evidence of other pitchers showing late year resurgences like Niekro and Ryan but I cannot find any batters showing such improvements
4) Much of Clemen’s Wins (why it is a bad stat) can be attributed to the fortune of playing on the Yankees
5) I will always argue that pitching is more of a thinking position than the batter whose greater skills are more reflex-oriented. Thus, you see nerds like Maddux or fat pigs like Forster succeed as pitchers whereas they would fail at any other position. And, thinking skills do not deteriorate with age as quickly as athletic or reflex ones.
6) Clemens seems a one of a kind with no other pitchers showing his late success. If he used an enhancement then it would seem other pitchers would show similar improvements.
Bonds is not the only one guilty of his crime-unfortunately, he went from being a great player to an uncanny one and stands out. The corporate boss who steals millions from the company treasury gets the press not the low-level clerk who steals a few dollars from petty cash.
By Rick
May 29, 2006 12:01 PM | Link to this
Wow, NRB. I never knew Babe Ruth and Micky Mantle threw away their careeres.
Ruth only hit 714 homeruns, still owns the record for pitching a 14 inning complete game, had a .342 career batting average, and 7 World Series rings to boot.
Ruth also hit 3 home runs in World Series games twice, has the all-time record for total bases in a single season(457), and had 5 hits in a game 6 times. He was only able to play 21 years, from 1914 to 1935.
Now Mantle on the otherhand. What a waste. He only had 536 homeruns, 7 World Series rings, won the triple crown, led the league in homers 4 times, played over 140 games 12 seasons (although he was continuously hurt), and played from 1951 to 1968.
Yea, you’re right NRB, what a waste of careers. Most players today would sell their mother to have half the career those guys had.
By John
May 29, 2006 12:01 PM | Link to this
The same people that cheered Mark McGwire, gets a taste of their own medicine. When the playing field is leveled…change the game. With the drugs and alcohol that Babe Ruth used, there’s no doubt if steriods were available “The Babe” would have been juiced also.
By Jenn Simoneaux
May 29, 2006 12:06 PM | Link to this
For one person to say that Ruth’s records were tarnished because he “didn’t play against the best players” is as absurd as he is uninformed. While blacks and hispanics did not play, neither was there a litany of other professional sports for the really great athletes to play. Professional football in the 1920s was blue collar sport consisting of fat men running around in baseball parks. Even the great Jim Thorpe took a turn at bat, but found he couldn’t hit a curve ball. Indeed, baseball in Ruth’s era was the ONLY sport and while the only sport did not include everyone, those it did include were the finest in the world.
By Deceptikon
May 29, 2006 12:09 PM | Link to this
It is times like this that make me ashamed to be human.
The evidence concerning Mr Bonds’ drug usage is well-documented. The majority of people posting here do NOT have a problem with Barry’s being Black—-they have a problem with his refusal to admit he is in the wrong.
The other issue here is the role-model thing. My feeling is that if you are in the public eye, you’re a role model. Period. And as a role model, you have a responsibility to be ready to be held accountable for your actions. And that goes for ANYONE in a position of fame or authority.
As a Black man I have serious problems with anybody who willingly makes my life that much harder. We all know that Blacks are scrutinized(?) more readily than Whites—-why make it harder? Does he REALLY need to treat people like crap? Is it in his job description?
But more to the point—-with so many things that desperately need our attention (schools, employment, government), how can we let a simple game divide us further?
We really need to get a grip, people. However this shakes out, we’ve still gotta live together.
Or, like another person said earler—-do we need another 9/11 to bring us together again for another 5 minutes?
By alan
May 29, 2006 12:12 PM | Link to this
I’m not making declarations here. This is just another angle to ponder. I say look at every homerun Bonds hit and take away every one that cleared the fence by ten feet or less, those being the ones you could argue he muscled over with a little extra help. All the rest are legit…..
By Avant
May 29, 2006 12:12 PM | Link to this
Have you ever heard white people discussing race. When ask if any issue is about race. The answer 99% of the time is, I don’t think so. If that answer doesn’t change race will be the down fall of the U.S.
By Saki
May 29, 2006 12:18 PM | Link to this
You are ALL wrong regarding the Home Run record. Sadaharu Oh of Japan hold the home run record. In his career spanning 1959 to 1980 he hit 868 homeruns.
I guess some of you would consider this tainted, since he was Japanese and didn’t face any Negro League players, but I know how much race, and not the person, means so much, to so many of you in this blog.
By JOHN B.
May 29, 2006 12:19 PM | Link to this
I’m so damn tired of this. Hitters are not the only guys who POSSIBLY took steroids. Evrybody focuses on hitters like Bonds and ignores the fact that over half of the players that have ACTUALLY been caught have been pitchers.
Bonds hitting his 715th homerun is an amazing accomplishment. He has never failed a drug test, but people still think of him as the enemy. I know there is a very good chance that he is guilty. For every hitter that took steroids, there is a pitcher that did the same thing. Therefore it evens itself out.
How many extra homeruns have been by steroids? Who knows. How many homeruns have been stolen away by pitchers on steroids? Who knows. My response to both of those questions: Who cares! 715 homeruns is still great. If it happened in the steroid era, that fine because pitchers were juiced as well!!
By Supaman
May 29, 2006 12:21 PM | Link to this
The Media is very rascist…
The end.
White People are a trip.
By Avant
May 29, 2006 12:23 PM | Link to this
I laugh when white guys write paragraphs saying they are black. There are a few uncle toms left, but we know who they are.
By uga4ever
May 29, 2006 12:28 PM | Link to this
The bottom line- Barry is bringing all of this on himself. DO YOU LOVE YOUR FAMILY AND CARE ABOUT THEIR WELL BEING? Well Barry claims that all of the “suspiciousion acts” is killing his family. Barry Bonds is worth close to 200 million dollars (Forbes 05). I don’t think that he is “working” to put food on the table. HE ONLY CAME BACK FOR SELFISH REASONS. Big Mac walked away and you don’t hear much about it. If Barry loved his family so much, why do this to them. BARRY, YOU ARE WORTH 200 MILLION DOLLARS….. GIVE YOUR FAMILY SOME PEACE. He is bringing all of this on himself. Yes, I believe he juiced up in order to “keep up” with his competition. I also believe Big Mac juiced up to “keep up” with the competition. He should have walked away. I DON’T THINK HE IS HURTING TO PAY THE BILLS AND TRYING TO PUT FOOD ON THE TABLE. IF HE WOULD HAVE WALKED AWAY….HE WOULD HAVE BEEN A FIRST BALLOT HALL OF FAMER. SORRY BARRY….YOU ARE DOING THIS TO YOURSELF!!!!!!!!!!
By uga4ever
May 29, 2006 12:32 PM | Link to this
Ruth only hit 714 homeruns, still owns the record for pitching a 14 inning complete game, had a .342 career batting average, and 7 World Series rings to boot.
Ruth also hit 3 home runs in World Series games twice, has the all-time record for total bases in a single season(457), and had 5 hits in a game 6 times. He was only able to play 21 years, from 1914 to 1935.
Now Mantle on the otherhand. What a waste. He only had 536 homeruns, 7 World Series rings, won the triple crown, led the league in homers 4 times, played over 140 games 12 seasons (although he was continuously hurt), and played from 1951 to 1968.
I THINK THE BLACK PANTHER PARTY ARE THE ONLY ONES WHO THINK BONDS IS THE BETTER PLAYER. CMON GUYS…RACE HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS. LEAVE THAT OUT OF IT FOR ONCE
By Scott
May 29, 2006 12:36 PM | Link to this
OK, let’s just drop the race issue…it’s a fact that there are still bigots out there; white, yellow, black and blue, they are all the same - I’m a Caucasian diehard Braves fan myself but don’t have any pretense about any other race. That doesn’t mean our consternation with Bonds has ANYTHING to do with his skin color. He’s always been a good player - as he is the son of a great player, there were always high expectations on him to be the same - and he has. I admire any player that can play the game of baseball with professionalism and skill - Pujols is killer if he remains healthy during his career. As far as sportwriters go, it’s a free country and they can write what they want - I happen to agree that Bonds is a jerk and not the best choice for baseball’s ambassador by a long shot. I was caught up in the ‘98 McGwire - Sosa battle - it was a blast to watch. It was well-known prior to that year that both players were juiced - even so they were venerated by the public and baseball as they became the ambassadors of the long ball - their advantage was that they were excellent people personally. Yes, their testimony before Congress was extremely poor - it has destroyed their reps without a doubt. Sosa self-destructed once he could no longer use steroids - it was obvious. Palmeiro was a case study in self-destruction and futility - it’s one thing to shade the truth, it’s another to outright lie and then be caught in it - THEN to try and blame it on a teammate - good Lord! Bonds’ problem is that he is a great player but a personal egotistical jerk - everyone knows his personality is a joke and THAT is what makes his records chase such a bummer - The Babe was kind of a bummer, too, if you believe the history written about him but he had his shining moments. Records are made to be broken and here we are. Steroids or no, Bonds has hit 715 home runs and you have to respect that, just as I respect McGwire, Sosa and Ruth. The present day guys were likely all juiced but it was known all along - too late to start slapping hands now…
By Deceptikon
May 29, 2006 12:38 PM | Link to this
Whoa, Avant.
Check yourself before saying something so insanely stupid.
Just because I don’t agree with you doesn’t make me an Uncle Tom or anything else than what I am:
An intelligent Black male who is not afraid to speak his mind—-even if his “peers” happen to disagree.
This should have never become a race thing, but ignorance and stupidity have done so.
To paraphrase Yoda: “This is why we fail”.
By Rick
May 29, 2006 12:41 PM | Link to this
You know it seems to me that there is a whole lot of Barry Bonds bashing going around by many and I’m not so sure it has anything to do with steroids?. Dispite all of the allegations and the ongoing investigations he has not been formally charged with any thing. He has not failed any drug tests past or present. He as of now is only guilty in the media hyped peoples TV court of law. I fully believe that when MLB, and the Feds. finish their investigations, if he has used steroids that he will be not only charged but rightfully found guilty and stripped of any performance records. His baseball career will be rightfully flushed down the drain. Until then, honor our constitution and civil rights “Innocent until proven guilty”. All this hate going around reeks of something else, and you know what I mean.
By MCH
May 29, 2006 12:42 PM | Link to this
Now let us move on to something else. There are many more sports figures which could be recognized for their worth to theri sport and to the human race.
By gdawg
May 29, 2006 12:46 PM | Link to this
Hey shelley. I am willing to bet you don’t have an education and your home has wheels underneath it. You’re also probably a budwiser drinkin unwedded mother of (2) or more children who walk around in overalls with dirty bare feet. Who knows? hell, I could be wrong about you. But I think we all know who the real morons are and that’s YOU & BARRY!
By Barroid
May 29, 2006 12:48 PM | Link to this
If I hear one more comparison between Lance Armstrong and myself, I’m going to throw up! First, Lance never…and I mean NEVER failed a drug test. He was the most tested athlete in the sport of competitive cycling…testing, not just urine samples but BLOOD samples…yes, the kind where it’s really hard to hide performance enhancing drugs. He was tested at all times…including off seasons where they would show up unannounced at his home and demand to take tests right there and then, and if he refused he was automatically considered guilty. Lance was tested all the time during the tours as well. Again, he never failed, not once. Lance Armstrong is an american hero, unlike myself.
Me, I’m a selfish SOB, who was NEVER tested when I was doing steroids/growth hormones and such. See, I’ve cleaned up now, b/c they test, and therefore my power numbers are way down.
So in conclusion, Stop comparing me and Lance Armstrong. We have nothing in common. Lance is a great athlete who did it all on his own and his biggest muscle is his heart. Me, I’m barroid, the HR hitting Robot who used to be one of the best players in the 90’s. End of discussion. Now go get educated and read “It’s not about the Bike” by Mr Armstrong. Might learn something about a great athlete there.
Sincerely,
Barry, Barroid Bonds!
By G
May 29, 2006 12:57 PM | Link to this
Yes, he did something bad. But steroids didn’t give him his swing, his timing, his eye, his judgment of flight trajectory, or his ability to know when to swing away. They gave him muscle mass, but that’s just a part of the picture. He was a damn good hitter before his involvment with steroids. He had the talent all along.
Punishment for his juice use should come without question. But I’m personally sick of seeing people act like a person’s flaws utterly negate the rest of his existence.
By JG4
May 29, 2006 01:04 PM | Link to this
In outline form:
It’s funny to me how Lance gets a pass for “never failing a drug test” and Bonds doesn’t.
What is “golden” about 714? It’s is the second number. I don’t care if the record stood for 1000 years, it’s luster wore off in 1974…period.
You still gotta him ‘em. Jeff, did you expect Barry to show up to the park everyday and only hit singles to keep from “embarrassing the game”.
I know you get paid to do this. Barry gets paid to play baseball. So I guess it’s fair to say that you have embarrased the AJC, the media, and newspapers worldwide for writing this article.
By RRR
May 29, 2006 01:08 PM | Link to this
This blog is truly a sad commentary on life in America. What a shame that is. Honestly, I am ashamed of being an American right now.
By Penn
May 29, 2006 01:15 PM | Link to this
Babe Ruth hit 714 in 8398 ABs and in 17 seasons of playing the outfield. His first five years were spent as a pitcher.
Bonds took 9228 and 20+ seasons to hit 714.
And The Babe did it on beer and hotdogs.
By Penn
May 29, 2006 01:15 PM | Link to this
Babe Ruth hit 714 in 8398 ABs and in 17 seasons of playing the outfield. His first five years were spent as a pitcher.
Bonds took 9228 ab’s and 20+ seasons to hit 714.
And The Babe did it on beer and hotdogs.
By Penn
May 29, 2006 01:17 PM | Link to this
That should have read:
“Bonds took 9228 ABs and 20+ seasons to hit 715.”
By RW
May 29, 2006 01:18 PM | Link to this
I could care less. To me, baseball was finished in September 1994. Today, baseball is nothing more than corporate greed, and ‘me, me, me’.
MLB could care less about the fans, and nothing is going to change. We could stop going, but I’m realistic enough to know that we do not have the backbone to do that.
Lastly, excusing one’s actions or blaming one’s shortcomings due to one’s race, is ignorant AND racist. Wrong is wrong no matter the color.
By Supaman
May 29, 2006 01:20 PM | Link to this
i am a very educated male…a Teacher at that..
Any fool can see this is rascist….
White people are a trip…
“Its allright when its all White”
By JJ
May 29, 2006 01:26 PM | Link to this
Wow! What ever happened to “Due Process”? Of course, that’s never been real popular in the south, what with the lynchings in years past and all that. Consider, Mark McGuire admitted to using performance enhancing drugs (Andro) but we never hear anything about that. Bonds denies using steroids, but he has been convicted by the media using hearsay as “evidence”. Even OJ, an “alledged” double murderer, got off without so much vitriol and hate as is being evidenced by the nation’s sports writers. Why? OJ was a personable individual. Bonds clearly is not. Bonds never suffered fools well and he never liked the media. Now, it’s payback time from a group of self important individuals who have the power of the pen. What an interesting contrast that great players like John Smoltz acknowledge Bonds to be the greatest hitter they have faced yet sportswriters are wrapped around the axle about the “sanctity” of baseball’s records and are disdainful about his accomplishments. They are just paying back a guy they really don’t like, and it galls them to see him break records of gentleman like Ruth, Mays, and Aaron. Barry’s not likable, but he’s a great baseball player. Congratulations Barry!
By RW
May 29, 2006 01:26 PM | Link to this
Supaman, please tell us where you got your ‘teaching certificate’ and where you teach. Because if you came out of school as ignorant as you sound, I want to make sure my son doesn’t go to school in either place.
What’s your motto, Supaman? “I’m black so I’ve got an excuse”? God forbid ignorant people like you are teaching our kids.
By George
May 29, 2006 01:27 PM | Link to this
The only bad thing about this article is that the great Pete Rose is mentioned in it. If Bonds ever makes it into the Hall of Fame, Rose should be ushered in on a red carpet. Charlie Hustle was the greatest to ever play the game!
By jj
May 29, 2006 01:30 PM | Link to this
Wow! What ever happened to “Due Process”?
Of course, that’s never been real popular in the south, what with the lynchings in years past and all that.
Consider, Mark McGuire admitted to using performance enhancing drugs (Andro) but we never hear anything about that.
Bonds denies using steroids, but he has been convicted by the media using hearsay as “evidence”.
Even OJ, an “alleged” double murderer, got off without so much vitriol and hate as is being evidenced by the nation’s sports writers. Why?
OJ was a personable individual. Bonds clearly is not. Bonds never suffered fools well and he never liked the media. Now, it’s payback time from a group of self important individuals who have the power of the pen.
What an interesting contrast that great players like John Smoltz acknowledge Bonds to be the greatest hitter they have faced yet sportswriters are wrapped around the axle about the “sanctity” of baseball’s records and are disdainful about his accomplishments. They are just paying back a guy they really don’t like, and it galls them to see him break records of gentleman like Ruth, Mays, and Aaron. Barry’s not likable, but he’s a great baseball player. Congratulations Barry!
By Saki
May 29, 2006 01:31 PM | Link to this
I can see why Georgia is at the bottom of the heap when it comes to education. With ignorant a-holes like Supaman ‘teaching’, that’s the best we can ever hope for.
By EG
May 29, 2006 01:37 PM | Link to this
No matter what they say about Ruth or bonds wherther it’s now or the future he (bonds) won’t get to Hank. Hank came south with the Braves and as I watched him that night on TV he passed Ruth. bonds won’t be able to get that far unless he’s allowed to just make a mockery of this sport. Until they chase him, sosa and the rest like they did mcguire I just can’t seem to get interested in the game again. The labor strife I can understand, but juicing and the audacidy of his wife to say that crap about hotdogs shows me that bonds nor the people that support him have a clue. Good article Jeff.
By Ryan
May 29, 2006 01:38 PM | Link to this
Give Barry a break…. He’s a productof his generation. Nobody chastizes Mark or Sammy for doing it like they do Barry and as far as his attitude goes…. You try getting booed everytime you step up to the plate and all of a sudden a fan who probably booed you to start with wants an autograph? Man get the hell out of here with that. I don’t blame him at all. I’ve been to Braves games where Chipper “The Golden Child of Atlanta” ignores the fans wanting an autograph, but do I get upset? Heck no. You know why? Because he signs those things just like Barry does and for someone to be p** at either of those would be a ludicrous thought. Congratulations Barry, you’ve officially told the haters to kiss your butt and they really deserved it too.
By JEFF
May 29, 2006 01:40 PM | Link to this
Supaman-I suspect your comments are simply a cruel joke to try to entice further racist comments on this board.
Bonds is a disgrace to baseball.
You are a disgrace to America.
By jj
May 29, 2006 01:44 PM | Link to this
So who is the greatest home run hitter in major league history? (aside from the Negro leagues)
I submit it isn’t Henry Aaron, or Babe Ruth, but Willie Mays.
Why? May’s missed two seasons during his prime to serve in the US Army. There went 100 home runs right there. Aaron played most of his career in a ball park that had the nickname “The launching pad” while Mays (and Bonds) played most of their careers in the cold, windy, inhospitable environment of Candlestick Park. As any one who plays golf knows, hitting a ball into a 30 mph wind takes a little distance off of your drive. No telling how many home runs Mays lost to that ball park.
Had Mays played at Fulton County stadium, and not lost two years to the service of his country, he may have hit 1,000 home runs-who knows?
My point is that you can rationalize any record you want with caveats, what ifs, and asteriks. Arnold Schwarzeneggar could not take John Smoltz out of the ball park. Did Bonds use steroids or did he engage in a strenuous conditioning program that packed on muscle? Either way, he still had to hit the pitch and his reflexes are the quickest I’ve ever seen from a hitter.
By Supaman
May 29, 2006 01:48 PM | Link to this
LOL…I dont have to entice further rascist comments…They are already here and have been…
Notice all of the “Villians” in any major sport are African American…T.O,Kobe,Barry,Artest and i dont think that its a mistake that Black atheletes are victimized by the media and ALL of white america…
Thus i will continue my statement…
White People are a trip.
“Its allright when its All-WHITE”
By Roids_R_bad
May 29, 2006 01:56 PM | Link to this
For everyone crying that Bonds hasn’t tested positive for a steroids test, you’re right. But he has used them — he admitted it! He said he never knowingly took steroids. If I don’t knowingly run a red light, does that mean I’m still not guilty?
We all know he took them. We don’t need due process or an innocent until proven guilty determination. Bonds has said he is guilty of taking steroids. And if you don’t think he is, you have your head in the sand! Nobody bulks up like that and goes on a hitting tear at age 37. NOBODY! … unless it’s better living through chemistry!
Bonds isn’t being targeted because he’s black. He’s undergoing these justified attacks because he’s broken the law, thumbed his nose at baseball’s hallowed records, and cheated for the extra power he needed to try to surpass one of the greatest and most humble men to ever play the game of baseball in Hank Aaron. Bonds would’ve waltzed into the hall of fame on his own power, but this arrogant punk should never have his name mentioned in Cooperstown, no matter how many legit home runs he hit. He’s a disgrace to the game!
By The Prophet
May 29, 2006 01:58 PM | Link to this
Yes,Jeff Schultz it is indeed a dark day for major league baseball. Hank Aaron is the homerun king and Barry Bonds has surpassed Babe Ruth the pot belly beer drinking womanizing superior athlete. According to myth, legend and nostalga, the Babe once ran the 100 in 12.0 flat. Now arrogant cocky undeservingly wealthy black athletes challenge the parasitic white sports writers and white medias notion of racial superiority. We must focus on the negative side of these black athletes so they can be put back in their place. Don’t you know that many of them have the nerve to now date and marry our women. We whites must protect the integrity of the game that has increasingly become more suburban and white.
Just ask Hank Aaron and Jackie Robinson how pure baseball is? Just look at baseball’s history of diversity and fairness to African Americans and other minorities? You have to admit that baseball is purer than the driven snow like a virgin that has never been touched.
Barry Bonds is a hero in the black community. We don’t care or need the approval of the parasitic white sports writers that dig and conjure up negativity about black athletes or the white media. Many of these white sportwriters could not play dead and know nothing about competing athletically. These white writers are leeching bloodsuckers sensationalizing any negativity associated with the black athlete either real or alleged. Without the black athlete they would have no jobs writing under the pretense of maintaining the integrity of baseball a game that never had any integrity in the first place.
Barry Bonds, the black people of America love you!
By Bo
May 29, 2006 02:02 PM | Link to this
C’mon Jeff, take off those self rightoues, holier than thou sunglasses and see the light…Bonds, the greatest slugger today…(Puhols coming on strong) Barry, until proven guilty has earned the accomplishment of home run slugger…You guys (writers) screwed Pete Rose…who is next..Puhols??? Let them join the Hall of Fame with the other vagrants…including the Babe…Sorry Babe I still luv ya!
By DustinH
May 29, 2006 02:08 PM | Link to this
Whats up with all the racial comments on here, the white pple are focusing on the fact that bonds is a roided up cheat,, while all the black pple are making any lame excuse they can to defend him. Face it, there is trashy pple of everyrace, i cant stand pple like 50 cent and think he should be taken out with a sniper rifle, but i also hate charles manson..so am i a racist cause im white and sayin it? hell no! It will be a sad day if bonds passes Hank Aaron!!
By DustinH
May 29, 2006 02:10 PM | Link to this
Whats up with all the racial comments on here, the white pple are focusing on the fact that bonds is a roided up cheat,, while all the black pple are making any lame excuse they can to defend him. Face it, there is trashy pple of everyrace, i cant stand pple like 50 cent and think he should be taken out with a sniper rifle, but i also hate charles manson..so am i a racist cause im white and sayin it? hell no! It will be a sad day if bonds passes Hank Aaron!!
By DustinH
May 29, 2006 02:10 PM | Link to this
Whats up with all the racial comments on here, the white pple are focusing on the fact that bonds is a roided up cheat,, while all the black pple are making any lame excuse they can to defend him. Face it, there is trashy pple of everyrace, i cant stand pple like 50 cent and think he should be taken out with a sniper rifle, but i also hate charles manson..so am i a racist cause im white and sayin it? hell no! It will be a sad day if bonds passes Hank Aaron!!
By Adam
May 29, 2006 02:11 PM | Link to this
Jeff,
Thank you for your article. It needed to be said.
To anyone that really wants to know what Baseball is about, check out the PBS collection by Ken Burns. There was a time, believe it or not, when people hinged their lives on the progress of their team and their players. Now players come and go, owners are a collection of people only looking for an investment, and fans can’t show up to at least one game a year. Bonds is just out for his, and who can blame him? That’s what society has become today. Everybody’s got their hand open, everybody wants somebody to help them out. Everybody wants his or her name in the headlines, and everybody has to outdo everybody else. I’m not surprised. Baseball has been heading in this direction for a long time. People are just collectively disappointed because they feel cheated. Not realizing that their athletes act just like they would if they were in that position. It’s just sad. Baseball is hollow and it’s been that way for a long time. It’s still the greatest game every conceived, and it’s not to say it will never return to greatness, but it’s as hollow as the midnight air. Baseball’s just an amusement now…not a way of life. It’s definitely not America’s past time.
By DustinH
May 29, 2006 02:11 PM | Link to this
Whats up with all the racial comments on here, the white pple are focusing on the fact that bonds is a roided up cheat,, while all the black pple are making any lame excuse they can to defend him. Face it, there is trashy pple of everyrace, i cant stand pple like 50 cent and think he should be taken out with a sniper rifle, but i also hate charles manson..so am i a racist cause im white and sayin it? hell no! It will be a sad day if bonds passes Hank Aaron!!
By JEFF
May 29, 2006 02:13 PM | Link to this
Supaman-
Ever hear of Pete Rose? John Rocker? Brian Bosworth? Christian Laettner? Jeff George? Tonya Harding? Need more examples?
The media can treat whites just like blacks-but I am not the media and my opinion of Bonds does not come from the media nor does it have anything to do with his skin color
By Victor
May 29, 2006 02:14 PM | Link to this
It’s sad that people make this out to be a race issue. It’s ridiculous to say that Bonds is hated by almost everyone because of his race. how many fights has he gotten into with his teammates and managers? And in response to those who say that the media is racially biased, there is a huge double standard in what can be said by minority sportscasters. Joe Morgan and others have made comments that would get any other reported easily fired. lastly, steorids and HGH do in fact improve your eyesight and also speed up recovery. bonds is a disgrace, Selig is a joke and it has nothing to do with race.
By Lawrence C F*
May 29, 2006 02:19 PM | Link to this
Has Barry Bonds fail a drug test? No, Is he guilty of being a p******, yes. Until he fails a drug test or their is real proof other somebody writing a book, I wish people would shut up about him. Guilty until proven innocent, but oh we live in the USA, guilty until proven guilty.
By Lane tucker
May 29, 2006 02:30 PM | Link to this
the nly reason Balc Barry Bnds hasn’t been suspended and b*ted *out *f the game is that he is black and MLB is afraid *f the Blacklash
they b*ted Pete Rse with a al*t less evidence
Balc* barry Bnds is a cheater wh kn*wingly cheated
Blac* Barry is the best home run hitter in the Bud Selig ster*id era
MLB shuld *rder the asteriks for Balc Barry’s “recrds” in 55 galln drums
By So_Many_Idiots
May 29, 2006 02:33 PM | Link to this
Lawrence, So, if someone says they’re guilty, does that prove it for you? Bonds has admitted to taking the Cream and the Clear, which we know through grand jury testimony were in fact steroids. Face it, he took steroids. He is guilty. We don’t need a test or a trial to prove it. Get over yourself and stop defending the biggest loser in professional sports today.
By Betty
May 29, 2006 02:38 PM | Link to this
Thanks Jeff for writing what I feel. I am glad to know that there are plenty of others who think that Bonds is a disgrace to baseball.
By Supaman
May 29, 2006 02:39 PM | Link to this
Jeff you are an idiot if you think Jeff George has been smashed by the media as any of the African American men that i mentioned…Its not going to happen becuase the media doesnt turn White Pro’s into Villians…
Barry Bonds Cheated…True
But. If Bonds was whtie he wouldnt have to face the white media and the rest of White America…It would be looked past like the Duke players raping the black girl or even Mac doing steriods…
White America doesnt not accept it when a African American breaks a record held by w white pro…face it
By titothebear
May 29, 2006 02:42 PM | Link to this
Bonds is about to be indicted for perjury! He’s also going to be brought before the bar of justice for failure to report income on his taxes, about $150,000. When the Mitchell report comes out, it will detail his involvement with Greg Anderson’s distribution of steroids and Bonds’ reliance upon Victor Conte’s products-numerous steroids. It will show when Bonds became steroid-dependent and how his production improved accordingly. It should be noted that Mitchell is investigating players other than Bonds. Also under investigation are Palmeiro, Sosa, McGwire and others. Once it can be determined, with certitude, when a particular player became steroid-dependent, his accomplishments from that point on will be subject to eradication. They never happened! This is the method employed by the governing body of Track and Field and it will become the method employed by Major League Baseball as well. Expunging the records of Sosa, Mcgwire, Bonds, Canseco and all others found to have cheated is the only way to make sure crime doesn’t pay. Of course, there will be an outcry from those whose life has been about making crime pay. Let them wail! Their cries of inequality, in defense of a laboratory- created thief, should be given no countenance and absolutely no creedence!
By Supaman
May 29, 2006 02:45 PM | Link to this
Instead of an asterisk..why dont yall put a rope around his name…cause i know yall want to lynch the big junglebunny…
Question to all the whites…who is worst Mark McGwire or Barry Bonds and what makes them diffrent?
By Greg
May 29, 2006 02:45 PM | Link to this
I am tired of people putting all of the blame on Barry Bonds. Sure he used steroids to break records, but baseball did not do one thing to test players until a few years ago and their testing is still a joke. Don’t buy baseball feining anger at Barry. Major League Baseball has reaped what it sowed by not testing at all for any steroids until a few years ago. They wanted fans coming back after the strike turned off fans, so they didn’t address the steroid problem even though players were freakishly big and rumors were flying around. That is called ignoring one problem to make more money off of the homeruns. MLB makes me sick.
By Betty
May 29, 2006 02:49 PM | Link to this
I just thought of something! Babe is in SECOND PLACE. That guy you are talking about who took the steroids and broke Babe’s record….what’s his name? Any way, the record holder is HANK! WHAT IS THE BIG DEAL HERE?
By Tom
May 29, 2006 02:50 PM | Link to this
I say steroids ought to be legal. Professional sports players are already freaks of nature today, given that anyone with great talent - even if he hated the game - would be a fool not to play because of the disgracefully large financial rewards. We spectators enjoy watching freaks of strength and speed do things we could never do; steroids only make that an even more enjoyable spectacle. Who didn’t enjoy watching McGwire stand to face a pitcher, scowling, with his monstrous arms and shoulders bulging threateningly. It’s the same reason the WWF is so popular. So let those homers rip! And let those 100mph fastballs fly!
Comparing records across eras in a sport is always speculative, anyway, given how technology and culture changes the sport so dramatically over time. A “Babe Ruth” figure of our time would have to hit 5-6x as many homers as anybody else to do what Babe Ruth did back then (hit 60 when everybody else was hitting 10 or so). The raw number means nothing anyway. Maybe everybody now is better than the real Ruth then; I think that is probably so.
By Stuck in Kentucky
May 29, 2006 02:51 PM | Link to this
jeff, i can add to that list: Steve Howe, Bill Romanowski, Ryan Leaf(a jerk not a druggie), Hillary Clinton, Newt Gingrich, Tom Delay, that NJ govenor, Brittany Spears, KFed, Tony Danza, Jon Koncak, Ryan Seacrest, Donald Trumps wig, Cathy Lee Gifford, and the Baldwins can be added to the people that make white people feel ashamed. I wonder if Supa and JJ are ashamed of any black people or are they so narrow minded that they cannot make a decision on their own.
By Shareef
May 29, 2006 02:59 PM | Link to this
Im sick of Black people being guilty until proven innocent. i have not seen any proof nor heard him admit to anything. This is the first time i have heard of a book and a slutty mistress convicting someone beyond a reasonable doubt. Mcgwire admitted to using creatine which i think is a performance enhancing substance. And the sick part is that the media still blames him for not wanting to talk to them. I wouldn’t either. Especially you Mr. Schultz. Why don’t you say it to his face?
By uga4ever
May 29, 2006 03:04 PM | Link to this
supaman- first, please learn English before posting. second- you are as racist as anyone on here with your comments third- C. McKinney has a rally today with the Panthers…. you are late
By Reef
May 29, 2006 03:11 PM | Link to this
titothebear must have some inside information the rest of us are not privy to. Tell us more titothebear.
By Thomas
May 29, 2006 03:24 PM | Link to this
You’re crazy. I’m glad youe not sitting on a jury. The steroid use is mere allegations at this point until proven. There is no need to prejudge and slander or show bias.
By titothebear
May 29, 2006 03:25 PM | Link to this
Shareefer,
Bonds admitted, to the Grand Jury, having used The Cream and The Clear. Those are steroids and he’s admitted using them. He maintained he didn’t know they were steroids and that’s where the perjury comes in. If he didn’t know, why was his urine being tested? He knew he was giving urine samples for some purpose. Care to explain the doping calendar, Shareef? It was found in Conte’s office. Care to tell us why Conte said he was providing steroids to Bonds if he wasn’t? As for Kimberly Bell, Bonds funneled cash to her from memorabilia shows and didn’t report those funds to the IRS. A case is going to be made on those charges, count on it! Bonds is an individual who believes he can get away with anything. When his misdeeds come to the fore he’s always pointed to someone else as having manipulated him. It won’t work this time. He’s going to stand before the bar of justice and receive his due. His stolen homerun records will be expunged and he will be excommunicated, for all time, from the game he has become a blight upon.
By Thomas
May 29, 2006 03:35 PM | Link to this
To titothebear,
Your point is quite detailed. You ever thought about going to law. But, if the case is so strong against Bonds, why does he have his own program on espn and secondly. why is he still playing baseball?
By CJ
May 29, 2006 03:35 PM | Link to this
TO gdg73: To hell with Babe Ruth? You read too much Terence Moore. Playing the old race card game doesnt get it anymore; it only makes you look like an idiot and a racist.
By CJ
May 29, 2006 03:36 PM | Link to this
TO gdg73: To hell with Babe Ruth? You read too much Terence Moore. Playing the old race card game doesnt get it anymore; it only makes you look like an idiot and a racist.
By CJ
May 29, 2006 03:37 PM | Link to this
TO gdg73: To hell with Babe Ruth? You read too much Terence Moore. Playing the old race card game doesnt get it anymore; it only makes you look like an idiot and a racist.
By CJ
May 29, 2006 03:39 PM | Link to this
TO gdg73: To hell with Babe Ruth? You read too much Terence Moore. Playing the old race card game doesn’t get it anymore; it only makes you look like an idiot and a racist.
By CJ
May 29, 2006 03:40 PM | Link to this
TO gdg73: To hell with Babe Ruth? You read too much Terence Moore. Playing the old race card game doesn’t get it anymore; it only makes you look like an idiot and a racist.
By Supaman
May 29, 2006 03:49 PM | Link to this
LOL…The race card wouldnt be an issue if whites hadnt placed it there, so dont complain..
Its not a race card, its the truth.
smh@White People
By The facts
May 29, 2006 03:54 PM | Link to this
I love how all these people here try to justify Barry by stating that he has never tested positive for steroids. While that is true, they have been only testing for just over a year.
Others saying there is no proof or evidnce, or smoking gun that he did steroids, are just another example of how incredibly ill informed people are.
In case you missed it, Bonds himself ADMITTED to USING STEROIDS under oath to a grand jury (his lame excuse was he didn’t realize it was steroids when he used them, but that is a lie because pro athletes don’t just don’t put stuff in their body without knowing full and well what it is and what it will do, which is why a perjury case is being built against him). I’m sorry, but that is proof. He did it. Get over it and accept the fact that he was juicing, as Bonds admitted himself under oath.
By titothebear
May 29, 2006 03:54 PM | Link to this
Thomas,
The indictments have not come down yet. It is my understanding that Bonds On Bonds, his television program on ESPN, has been axed. He’s still playing because of due process. Once he’s indicted, Selig will suspend him indefinitely. Essentially, this suspension will put an end to his tainted career.
By Smookey
May 29, 2006 04:01 PM | Link to this
If everyone was allow to play during Babe Ruth’s era, would Babe Ruth be the second home run leader? I think not. There were a lot of great players at that time, who were not able to play in the major league because of their race. Racism was behind it then as it is now. There is no proof that Bonds was using steroids. There are a lot disgruntled people who choose not to be rational about the situation regarding Barry Bonds.
By Deano
May 29, 2006 04:04 PM | Link to this
TO SUPAMAN- To hell with black people. The world would be much better off. less crime, less taxpayer money for your welfare, less kids having to be raised by their grandmother,etc etc etc. That’s the truth. You want racist… I will give it to you
By Thomas
May 29, 2006 04:23 PM | Link to this
to titothebear.
Even if what you say is true, BIG MONEY is the not going let Bonds out of the lime light because he’s doing too much for the game and making them BIG PROFITS.
What do you think?
By ms
May 29, 2006 04:31 PM | Link to this
Hey Supaman….the media doesn’t turn black players into villans either…..they do that to themselves! No other race complains as much about how much they are mistreated, about how no one is fair to them, about how they have to “work” so hard than the black race. GET OVER it!
By titothebear
May 29, 2006 04:32 PM | Link to this
Well, now we’ve plumbed new depths and have found the lowest common denominator. Barry Bonds has cheated at baseball and he’s committed criminal acts. This will be proven in a court of law. The hurling of racial invective isn’t really availing us of any knowledge other than that racism, black and white, is very much alive. A cheater, whether black or white, is a cheater and he doesn’t deserve our respect and he doesn’t deserve to be in the record books of baseball. All the steroid creeps, once proved to be man-made beasts, should have their accomplishments stricken. No asterisk! No mention! No record! No career! You folks claiming racism, on the part of whites, are advocating a free pass for an unrepentant thief and you need to stop throwing up that smokescreen. You are using it to disguise your advocacy of theft and larceny. Tell the truth, if it’s in you. You support Bonds, even though its documented he’s a steroid user of the first order, because he’s of the same race you are. Just admit it and quit trying to put a sheet on every person who feels he’s totally undeserving of any respect!
By ms
May 29, 2006 04:34 PM | Link to this
Hey Supaman….the media doesn’t turn black players into villans either…..they do that to themselves! No other race complains as much about how much they are mistreated, about how no one is fair to them, about how they have to “work” so hard than the black race. GET OVER it!
By blackpride
May 29, 2006 04:36 PM | Link to this
Congratulations, Barry Bonds. What’s done is done. F**k you Deano. Some of your own people you need to deal with. Like gettin them off meth. Less crime, less taxpayer money for your welfare, less kids having to be raised by their grandmother,etc etc etc. It’s a poverty thang, not solely a white or black thang
By ms
May 29, 2006 04:37 PM | Link to this
Hey Supaman….the media doesn’t turn black players into villans either…..they do that to themselves! No other race complains as much about how much they are mistreated, about how no one is fair to them, about how they have to “work” so hard than the black race. GET OVER it!
By Thomas
May 29, 2006 04:46 PM | Link to this
to titothebear,
I not upset about Bonds, Pete Rose both of whom I adore. The world is corrupt as long as you have greed. Sports is made purely for our entertainment and it cost MONEY to produce. If the annals of time documents anything, it documents the fact that people will do anything if enough MONEY is involved. It doesn’t matter whether there black, white, green etc. We know the BONDS thing is PSYCHO, but look how at how it’s keeping us amused and the people that have vested interest are getting rich…..
By Greg
May 29, 2006 04:50 PM | Link to this
I am tired of hearing how baseball is upset about the steroid scandal and Bud Selig won’t celebrate Barry Bonds moving into second place past Babe (I’m an alcoholic and slept with prostitutes) Ruth. Bud Selig didn’t seem to care about testing for steroids when Mark (my traps go into my jaw) McGwire and Sammy (corked bat and phony smile) Sosa were slamming balls out of the park at an unbelievable pace. Selig didn’t mind making all that money and getting all the tv exposure for baseball over the homerun race even though he was turning a blind eye to steroids by not testing. He needs to look down his nose at himself and baseball. Perhaps the public should turn their ire toward him and those who colluded with him to allow this farce to happen. It is no coincidence McGwire retired only a few seasons after his record. His body was torn up from steroids. Sosa sucks now because he is not juicing and Barry’s power numbers have trailed off considerably. The public needs to put their on the real villain in this whole mess and it is Bud Selig and other higher ups who have profitted handly from steroids.
By titothebear
May 29, 2006 04:51 PM | Link to this
Blackpride,
What are you congratulating Bonds about, cheating better than the rest? Take this to the bank, what’s done, in his case, can be un-done! Your celebrating the accomplishment of a total fraud is very telling. As for all the other garbage you spewed, trash day is Tuesday. Save it for the collection!
By GetReal
May 29, 2006 04:56 PM | Link to this
Spare me the sanctimonius baloney Mr. Schultz. Where are your writings about the 400+ and growing professional football players who weigh over 300 pounds who all got that way by steroids. Steroid use has been in every imaginable sport since the 1970s. You are either too dumb to know that or you just report what you want to report. Either way, you have no credibility. If you want to break out the asterisks, you’re going to have to hang them on a lot of white guys too.
By Supaman
May 29, 2006 04:57 PM | Link to this
TO SUPAMAN- To hell with black people. The world would be much better off. less crime, less taxpayer money for your welfare, less kids having to be raised by their grandmother,etc etc etc. That’s the truth. You want racist… I will give it to you
LOL….Im sorry did i make you spill your Starbucks latte???
Without Blacks……..Your Favorite Sports teams would be NOTHING.
By Supaman
May 29, 2006 04:59 PM | Link to this
Ms…
I have nothing to get over..Im happy
The two TOP HR LEADERS IN HISTORY ARE BLACK!!!!!!!!!!!
Why would i be upset???? LOL
By TiredWhiteGuy
May 29, 2006 05:07 PM | Link to this
I’m really getting tired of hacks like Schultz beating up on Mr. Bonds. He has hit his home runs off the best pitching ever, albeit pitching enhanced by steroid use. They’ve all done them and everyone has turned their heads. Now that someone is breaking records that no one considers a media darling, these sportswriters who have know about steroid abuse for decades are now dragging it out like it’s a new revelation. I’m not buying it.
By RW
May 29, 2006 05:09 PM | Link to this
Hey Stupaman:
“Without Blacks……..Your Favorite Sports teams would be NOTHING.”
I think you got that backwards.
By Supaman
May 29, 2006 05:14 PM | Link to this
Nope RW…I said what i meant and meant want i said..which is the truth…
Blacks make YOUR favorite team good…;)
By thick_headed_ppl
May 29, 2006 05:14 PM | Link to this
People who argue to support Barry Bonds are either a) stupid, b) completely ignorant, or c) giants fans. Facts are facts. He admitted to using the cream and the clear—which were both proven to be steroids. Anybody who wants to celebrate a jealous cheater, by all means, go ahead. The rest of America will shame him for what he truly has become—the biggest disgrace to America’s favorite pasttime.
By Greg
May 29, 2006 05:16 PM | Link to this
Stop whining about Barry Bonds and black vs. white. Start protesting the real villain, Bud Selig and MLB management. They were the ones who allowed this farce to happen by not testing in the first place. Now Selig feigns being mad about the loss of integrity in the game. He profited off of it. He is just mad that it he got caught and was embarrassed by Congress that he hadn’t tested earlier. He is also mad because the public won’t stop talking about steroids as Barry approaches the record. This is all Bud Seligs fault. He cared more about money than the integrity of the game. Don’t buy that he had no idea that players were using steroids. He could have easily pushed testing, but wanted the money and adulation the homerun race brought. Now people see baseball for what it really is, a boring sport with many people who are out of shape (not everyone) and no salary cap so New York Yankees buy their way to the top or into the top 4 every year. It is sick, get a salary cap Bud. No one believes the Yankees buying everyone is fair.
By RW
May 29, 2006 05:21 PM | Link to this
Truth be told, as you say…Blacks would be nothing without sports…that is unless you want to count stealing, welfare, and smoking crack a sport…..
By DixieDawg
May 29, 2006 05:30 PM | Link to this
Schultz is just writing what his readers want to hear. You can see from the posts here that most of white Georgia is still dominated by rednecks who hate Barry because he’s black. These are the same morons who want to bring back the old state flag. Steroids have nothing to do with it. These same people will be cheering their steroid abusing high school football players in the fall.
By geechee
May 29, 2006 05:35 PM | Link to this
Nice post Greg.
Jeff thanks for pointing out that the once vilified Jose Canseco has turned out to be “the shining light”. He is not getting enough credit for forcing baseball and its fans to face the brutal truth.
By Mike
May 29, 2006 05:35 PM | Link to this
This forum is about as useless as “t**” on a boar hog!!!!!!!!!!!!!
By Rick
May 29, 2006 05:41 PM | Link to this
Boar hogs have t**? Learn something new every day!
By Hawk
May 29, 2006 05:42 PM | Link to this
It’s a shame that so many “writers” sit and play Monday morning quarterback. Most of these folks have never been athletes…let alone good writers. OK…you want to question Bonds because his name came surfaced in the BIG Steriod Scandal…why doesn’t any talk about McGwire and his Createen addiction (which was ironically banned a year after he broke the single season record and retired). Fitting enough that a fake would walk away from the game rather than face the music about his own enhancement. The fact remains that steriods don’t help you hit a 95 mph fastball OR a inside slider coming @ you @ 90 mph. I agree that Bonds hasn’t been a media darling and believe me…I am not Barry fan…but I am a fan of talent and the man has it…undeniable. This reminds me of the bitterness that black america had towards Larry Bird…because of the color of his skin. But the simple fact of the matter is that Larry Bird was better than 95% of the NBA when he was in his prime. The man could flat out play. Why doesn’t the media spend more time in recognizing the fact that Bonds has hit 715 bombs. I know everybody wants the “Babe” to remain akin to GOD…but records are made to be broken. Babe Ruth didn’t play against the best so I do have to much admiration for his accomplishment(s). And why doesn’t the media write about the way that Babe Ruth was disliked because of “colored” features…a la his large, round nose and his skin color. Not to mention his womanizing ways and alcoholic tendencies…yet this is our martyr for the game of baseball…pure garbage. However, I give him credit for being the best out of his bunch…undeniably. But the Babe Ruth didn’t have a fraction of the talent that Barry Bonds has in his crippled knee.
By Steve
May 29, 2006 05:47 PM | Link to this
The biggest farce to come out of the Bonds situation is that columnists and commentators get to recycle years of material a couple time a week. They are too unmotivated, lazy or uninspired to do anything other than collectively write the same column (or make the same comments on radio and television) day after day after day. There will be no * beside the HR record list. Want to discuss “performance enhancement?” Start with One-A-Day vitamins. Steroids are merely on the same continuum. Want to suspend him for the grand jury testimony? Say goodby to Giambi. For evidence other than a positive test? Say goodbye to a huge percentage of players. And so on, and so on. Bonds will be gone in a couple years (at the latest) and baseball would be best served by waiting it out and moving on from the whole Sosa/McGuire/Bonds era. If he test positive, obviously, he is gone - just like anyone else. Until then, Selig is a bigger joke than Bonds. And columnists from third-rate papers like the AJC right on up to the Post and Tribune will just keep cut & pasting articles.
By Anthony Wainwright
May 29, 2006 05:48 PM | Link to this
Your comments are very biased and opinionated. You have no proof that this man has done steroids. If he has, he should not be allowed in the hall of fame nor should he be recognized. But for the mere fact you and other media cats torture a phoenimal athlete in the papers and in your columns and the fact that the commissioner has not recognized Mr. Bonds accomplishments is a disgrace to any basebell fan. You should not be allowed to poison the minds of innocent fans and have them acting out based on what the media is saying. Mr. Bonds has not been found guilty of anything. This is an outrage. Babe Ruth’s record has been broken for years by a gentleman by the name of Hank Aaron. Babe Ruth is dead and so is his record. Records are made to be broken. I don’t hear anyone even acknowledging that Hank Aaron is the king of home runs. Babe Why is it that a man that has been dead for decades still reign as a record holder when his records has been broken for decades? You guys are controlling the minds of new baseball generations to come with all of this Babe Ruth mumbo jumbo. Who cares if Babe Ruths family has not shown up? Hank Aaron is the king of home runs. I don’t want to hear that Babe Ruth was a pitcher for the first five years of his career. He did not play against any negro league players nor did he play against today’s level of competition. Regardless if Barry Bonds used steroids or not, this guy still hit 715 home runs and has 500 plus stolen bases as well as a slugging percentage of over 800 for eight eight year. Did steroids enhance his ability to steal 500 home runs, win league MVP’s and golden glove awards. Steroids does not give the ability to see the ball and hit it. Jose Canseco, Mark McGuire, Sammy Sosa, Rafeal Palmerio has not hit 715 homeruns and neither of them have 500 stolen bases nor do they have a slugging percentage of 800 or better more that eight times and they never will. It is ashame that you guys constantly build players up and at the end of the day, you are the first to tear them down. Half of you ignorant sports writers have never had the abilitly to play any sports, therefore you don’t know what it takes to hit a baseball. Baseball is a very mental sport steroids or not. Mr. Bonds has to prepare himself every single day of the week for not only the competition of his peers, but for the public lynching from the sports writers. You guys are a disgrace to all fans of baseball. Get some balls and stand up and speak on facts and not on what others are gossipping about. Get the facts first. No one has ever stated that they have seen this man do steroids. The only time that steroids and Barry Bonds are mentioned in the same sentence is from the Media to the fans.
By Richard
May 29, 2006 05:49 PM | Link to this
First of all, we all need to stop pretending that Barry Bonds has broken a record. He hasn’t broken anything. The career home run record is 755 and last I checked, hes still 40 home runs away. Secondly, with all the allegations swirling around Bonds with alledged steroids abuse, not a single person has produced a positive drug test. All we have is an accusation and no evidence. Even if he did use steroids, MLB didn’t have a rule against it until 2002 so he cant be accused of cheating. Personally, I believe Bonds was using steroids, but I also believe EVERY professional athlete is on some kind of drug. If he’s so obviously using performance enhancing drugs, we should easily be able to find some kind of positive drug test. What’s that? There isn’t one? Well then it’s innocent until proven guilty.
By smookey
May 29, 2006 05:50 PM | Link to this
Face the facts. The biggest crooks in the world are white. Welfare, theft and crimes against humanity.
By Supaman
May 29, 2006 05:55 PM | Link to this
RW..Let’s not forget..
We are also good at pleasing…WHITE women..;)
By RW
May 29, 2006 05:56 PM | Link to this
You make a good point smookey, and you’re right. Just ask OJ.
By Deano
May 29, 2006 06:00 PM | Link to this
if you would like to know what America would be like if blacks were in control-
SEE THE WHOLE CONTINENT OF AFRICA. 25% aids 90% of the continent are in poverty, slade trading is still active
if you ever want to have a valid argument for evolution- take a look at blacks….. a lot of them look very similar to chimpanzees
By Hawk
May 29, 2006 06:01 PM | Link to this
I agree with you Anthony Wainwright…Bonds hasn’t broken THE record…he just broke A record that the journalist and baseball enthusiats have treasured for so long. Babe Ruth has been second to Hank Aaron for over 20 years but MLB doesn’t promote Hank Aaron…who by the way had one the most productive careers in the history of the game both offensive and defensively. HE (Aaron) has never been give the proper credit or respect that I feel he deserves. He played the game the way that it is supposed to be played and he played the game with dignity and grace…despite the many hateful tactics and experiences that he encountered due to his place in MLB. While Bonds will never be a Hank Aaron…his 715 home runs is not a dream, mirage or fantasy…he’s cleard the wall 715 times. That is a fact. Whether people like it or not.
By Hawk
May 29, 2006 06:04 PM | Link to this
I agree with you Anthony Wainwright…Bonds hasn’t broken THE record…he just broke A record that the journalist and baseball enthusiats have treasured for so long. Babe Ruth has been second to Hank Aaron for over 20 years but MLB doesn’t promote Hank Aaron…who by the way had one the most productive careers in the history of the game both offensive and defensively. HE (Aaron) has never been give the proper credit or respect that I feel he deserves. He played the game the way that it is supposed to be played and he played the game with dignity and grace…despite the many hateful tactics and experiences that he encountered due to his place in MLB. While Bonds will never be a Hank Aaron…his 715 home runs is not a dream, mirage or fantasy…he’s cleard the wall 715 times. That is a fact. Whether people like it or not.
By Hawk
May 29, 2006 06:04 PM | Link to this
I agree with you Anthony Wainwright…Bonds hasn’t broken THE record…he just broke A record that the journalist and baseball enthusiats have treasured for so long. Babe Ruth has been second to Hank Aaron for over 20 years but MLB doesn’t promote Hank Aaron…who by the way had one the most productive careers in the history of the game both offensive and defensively. HE (Aaron) has never been give the proper credit or respect that I feel he deserves. He played the game the way that it is supposed to be played and he played the game with dignity and grace…despite the many hateful tactics and experiences that he encountered due to his place in MLB. While Bonds will never be a Hank Aaron…his 715 home runs is not a dream, mirage or fantasy…he’s cleard the wall 715 times. That is a fact. Whether people like it or not.
By Richard
May 29, 2006 06:24 PM | Link to this
I thought you were innocent until proven guilty in this country. i guess bonds isn’t. until he’s tried convicted and sentenced he should he should be given the benefit of the doubt. thank you
By Greg
May 29, 2006 06:25 PM | Link to this
Geechee, Thanks for your praise.
I just wish people would blame the right people. It is like when the public whines about players making too much. They don’t make too much. They make as much as the market pays based on box sales, tickets sales, commercials, and merchandise and food at stadiums. If people don’t like what atheletes make in salary, then don’t go to a game or a watch a game on tv or buy a jersey ever, period. Anyone who whines but buys tickets even occassionally is a hypocrite. Just like people who say they want to pay less in taxes, but of course don’t want cuts in services. The owners are the ones who need to be ridiculed and not the players. The owners make way too much and get sweetheart stadium deals largely financed with taxpayer dollars. You don’t hear the public whining nearly as much about that. It the same thing in politics. People are whining about immigration, even though it hasn’t been a major issue in the past ten years or more. The right wing republicans in congress are looking for something to divert attention away from Iraq and the moron Bush so they don’t lose. This immigration issue will be gone the second the congressional elections have past just like the national ammendment to ban gay marriage right before the 2004 election. The public needs to wake up to fools leading them by the nose and look at what is really important.
By Roy
May 29, 2006 06:31 PM | Link to this
One of Bonds’ physical attributes is that he has great eyesight. You CAN NOT achieve great vision with pharmaceuticals. What Bonds was NOT gifted with was great strength. In his early years as a Pirate Bonds was not sinewy. In fact Bonds appears somewhat frail in pictures from that era. Muscle mass and strength CAN be achieved with anabolic steroids. While many MLB players in recent years have benefitted from steroids, none of these players were as naturally testosterone deficient as Bonds, who, obviously, has benefitted the most from roids.
By martell winston
May 29, 2006 06:33 PM | Link to this
I am no fan of Barry Bonds and could care less about his stats…I am however a fan of Mr. Hank Aaron. The Media as a whole owes Hank Aaron an apology; does the Babe hold the homerun record or was he actually in 2nd place? Since when do we celebrate 2nd place in any sport? There is only one homerun king and his name is Hank Aaron, everyone; including Bonds is chasing Hank Aaron..the chasing ruth comment is an insult due to the fact that “RUTH IS NOT THE HOMERUN KING”. He is now in 3rd place. Barry to my knowledge has yet to fail a steroid test; but since he has no love for the media all of the media jumped on the bus to run him down. Where was this same bus when Mark Mcguire was hitting homeruns 500ft?? Oh; I remember…That was good for baseball who at the time had lost the title of Americas Past time. I would like all players tested right now…most of the players in baseball were on some sort of designer steroids. By now I am quite sure they have developed something new that will not be detected by the current tests. They always seem to be 50 steps ahead of major league baseball. Bonds more than likely will past Aaron; just as a way of telling the media to kiss his a*…and that would be a disgrace…but no bigger disgrace than the what the media has become in its all out assault on this one player. It would hurt him more if the media simply ignored him and gave him as little press as possible. There is so much negative press about Barry that its become
easy for an average baseball fan to go enough already…LET’S MOVE ON!!!!!!!!!!!!!
By kph
May 29, 2006 06:34 PM | Link to this
Supaman, Do you not think the Duke players are not under the scrutiny of the media? Man you havent been watching the same tv stations or reading the same newspapers and magazine articles that I have. Open your eyes and ears dude.
By J L Sammons
May 29, 2006 06:36 PM | Link to this
Bond’s hat size increased 3-4 sizes. A 30 + something year old man cannot increase the size of his head. Unless, he has human growth hormones. Common sense tells you that he is quilty and the fact that he continues to put on a uniform will disgrace any man or woman with the last name of Bonds for eternity.
By Jason
May 29, 2006 06:48 PM | Link to this
I am sick and tired of everyone simply assuming that, because Bonds is black, that it is the white man out to get him. It is an extremly ignorant and stupid comment to make. This is not the 1960’s. The truth is, black or white, Bonds IS no Dale Murphy. He is not someone outside of SF that people like. I saw Bonds hit THREE homeruns in one game one night at Turner Field. THREE homers!! It’s a night I’ll never forget - there was a long rain delay and the PA announcer comes on and says something to the effect of “to all the hard core Braves fans that stayed, you can come sit wherever you want.” So it turned into an intimate ballgame, with the fans all sitting behind home plate and the dugouts. The entire crowd was taunting Bonds. He didn’t care and smacked three homers. And it’s a night I’ll never forget. But I’m tired of these people saying it’s a racial issue. I don’t care if Bonds is black, white, purple, or blue with pink polka dots - the fact remains as such: Juice or not, the simple fact that he is even surrounded by that alligigation is enough for me to have no respect for him. If he was a decent person, he would’ve had NOTHING to do with steroids and then maybe he’d have respect. The fact that it is POSSIBLE that he did it is his own fault - the fact that he did it or not is irrelevant - it’s the simple fact that he got himself into the mess; into the situation - and for that - he deserves no respect. It’s just like a good person getting mixed up in the wrong crowd of friends - they should’ve never been there in the first place, and for making such a stupid movie, they get no respect. Bonds is no different. Making it a racial issue has got to stop and it’s simply an excuse people use because they are to stupid to think of anything else. This is 2006, not the 1950s. People that make it a racial issue are simply racists themselves. Sports reporters aren’t after Bonds because he is black. That’s the dumbest thing I have EVER heard. And the sad thing is, the people that say this crap proably don’t even personally know any sports reporters. Bonds can brake the Babe’s record all he wants - Aaron will ALWAYS be the Home Run King, no matter HOW many “homeruns” Bonds puts up in his “career.”
Jason
By kph
May 29, 2006 06:52 PM | Link to this
I just got home after being on this blog some this morning. I see that the crack heads and racist woke up while I was gone. Supaman you are a racist living in a black colored dream world. Get your head on straight or this racist bulls__t is never going to end. We are tired of reverse racism just as your forefathers who went about it properly (SEE THE WRITINGS OF DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING) were. It will never be over if idiots like you never quit bringing it up!!! I also belive tht Mark Mcguire, Rafael Palmero, Sammy Sosa, or any other roid users records should not count because if you cheated to get them then you dont deserve them. I have many friends black, hispanic and white who have agreed with me on this roid issue and that is what it is a steroid cheating issue not a race issue. Get over it racist!.
By DirkDawggler
May 29, 2006 07:11 PM | Link to this
He cheated. He continues to cheat. I don’t give a crap if he’s hit 700 or 70…he’s a cheater and Selig deserves every single bit of PR angst that goes along with this whole sordid affair. Bud Selig did not have the stones to do anything about not only Bonds, but McGwire, Sosa and the whole lot. Baseball lost me as a fan in ‘94 anyway, so I really don’t care anymore. Sad thing is, Barry will probably die prematurely from some strange mutated form of cancer or something. I don’t think you can inject yourself with something as powerful as the steroids he’s been doing and not pay for it later.
By Handsome John
May 29, 2006 07:32 PM | Link to this
Bonds certainly is no all-star. The stupid people that votes these guys in are a disgrace. What happened to run hit,throw and field. Baseball is not even fun to watch anymore. Go back to letting the managers vote.
By The Man
May 29, 2006 07:38 PM | Link to this
I’m shocked at how many nimrods try to make this a Racial Issue…Blah Blah Blah stop your whining and blaming whitey for every problem in your life….Writers dont like Bonds because he is a cheat, phony, and a liar. Get a grip dumb asses and use some common sense!!! When you get older the body does not get stronger and better…. Hank Arron does not deserve his record to be beaten by a phonie cheat…Oh by the way Aaron is black..hmmm guess the white writers dont like that either….
By rangersfan
May 29, 2006 07:39 PM | Link to this
ruth was not even considered one of the top 5 athletes during his time, so how can be considered one of the greatest today. ruth never played with athletes that were not white. if babe played today, who knows if he would even be out of triple a. the media has vilified bonds, and white america has fed into, and bud selig is the biggest idiot of all. instead of addressing the issue, he hides in his cave and doesnt come out. the same way that he intentionally not market the game to black america. its very funny how the number of black athletes in mlb has slowly decreased since he has taken oath. now less than 100 american born blacks play the game.
go job bud………………
By The Man
May 29, 2006 07:39 PM | Link to this
I’m shocked at how many nimrods try to make this a Racial Issue…Blah Blah Blah stop your whining and blaming whitey for every problem in your life….Writers dont like Bonds because he is a cheat, phony, and a liar. Get a grip dumb asses and use some common sense!!! When you get older the body does not get stronger and better…. Hank Arron does not deserve his record to be beaten by a phonie cheat…Oh by the way Aaron is black..hmmm guess the white writers dont like that either….
By The Man
May 29, 2006 07:40 PM | Link to this
I’m shocked at how many nimrods try to make this a Racial Issue…Blah Blah Blah stop your whining and blaming whitey for every problem in your life….Writers dont like Bonds because he is a cheat, phony, and a liar. Get a grip dumb asses and use some common sense!!! When you get older the body does not get stronger and better…. Hank Arron does not deserve his record to be beaten by a phonie cheat…Oh by the way Aaron is black..hmmm guess the white writers dont like that either….
By Greg
May 29, 2006 07:54 PM | Link to this
Babe Ruth did great things for baseball, but did not play with black atheletes, so his accomplishments are suspect. Against the pitchers (who did not have closers back then) black players would have slaughtered the Babe’s old records.
By Slow Play
May 29, 2006 08:01 PM | Link to this
Why why why why does everything little thing have to become a black/white thing? I am just so sick of it. This is NOT a black/white thing. The press and fans are not ragging on Bonds because he is black. He cheats..PERIOD!
Did whites rage about racism when Rose was banned from baseball? Hell no! Why? Because it’s not a black/white thing. Rose broke the rules. He bet on baseball. He wasn’t banned because he is white.
Shultz has hit the nail on the head here. Bonds is a jerk, he’s an embarrassment, and I’m just praying that he doesn’t break Hammerin Hanks record. What a sad day for Atlanta and Aaron if he does.
By dirt
May 29, 2006 08:04 PM | Link to this
The heck with Bonds. He’s typical of the whole problem with baseball. It’s not that he’s black, he’s just in front of the camera for the moment. The problem is that money has ruined the game. A bunch of millionaires playing a game that most little boys would love to play for free. Owners, agents, and players, have forgotten what this game is truly all about. It’s not about records, money or winning. What was it that made you fall in love with the game? I bet it wasn’t one of the above.
Note on P. Rose: Make Shoeless Joe eligible for the HOF vote now…….…….then in 87 years, declare Pete eligible.
By richard bancroft
May 29, 2006 08:05 PM | Link to this
I agree with your article and the points you make about Bonds. What needs to be kept in the public eye is the Commission supposedly investigating drug usage. With Selig not taking a stand on Bonds(or unable to because of the player’s union) and the commission barely doing anything, is it any wonder so many of us loyal fans of the game are fed-up with the beauracracy of baseball. Why have these lead figures lost the guts to speak and act for the good of the game? I continue to love baseball but turn my back on Bonds and those who condone him. He, by using drugs and acting like a egotistical jerk, is a sad representative of baseball and humanity. Race is not a factor but his personal morality and ethics are the issue.
By Thomas
May 29, 2006 08:09 PM | Link to this
My first major league basewall game was at Candlestick park in San Fran. That day I saw Willie Mays hit a home run, Willie McCovey get a base hit and Barry Bonds Sr. get a double and score as he flew around the bases. Barry’s dad sure could run fast.
I think it’s great that Barry Bonds can continue the San fran Giants tradition of greatness in our favorite American pastime.
Go Barry!
By CDog
May 29, 2006 08:15 PM | Link to this
Steroid and racial issues aside, it is always kind of exciting when a longstanding record becomes in danger of falling. Of course, I am sure someone will bring up Sadaharu Oh with 868 in Japan. It is difficult to compare different generations (and leagues) of baseball because of so many differences. The ballparks, the quality of pitching, and the rules can vary so much. For example, the rules once stipulated that an over-the-fence home run in a sudden-victory situation would only count for as many bases as was necessary to “force” the winning run home. For example, if a team trailed by 2 runs with the bases loaded, and the batter hit a fair ball over the fence, it only counted as a triple, because the runner immediately ahead of him had technically already scored the game-winning run. That rule was changed in the 1920s as home runs became increasingly frequent and popular. Babe Ruth’s career total of 714 would have been one higher had that rule not been in effect in the early part of his career.
By lucky lady
May 29, 2006 08:16 PM | Link to this
I am very disappointed that the AJC, is allowing some of the most racist comments to be posted! With comments such as calling African Americans, Blackies, Junglebunnies etc. This is absolutely pathetic! No matter if you like African Americans or not, the truth of the matter is that the RECORD to BE BROKEN is Held By Hank Aaron (755). It really doesn’t matter how many homeruns Babe Ruth hit, it still is not enough to give him a slot in first place. I am also pretty sure that Babe Ruth was not a saint. If you are in SECOND place it’s because you did not do enough, or could not do enough to be in FIRST.
By Deano
May 29, 2006 08:19 PM | Link to this
if you would like to know what America would be like if blacks were in control- SEE THE WHOLE CONTINENT OF AFRICA. 25% aids 90% of the continent are in poverty, slade trading is still active
if you ever want to have a valid argument for evolution- take a look at blacks….. a lot of them look very similar to chimpanzees
By schwartz
May 29, 2006 08:33 PM | Link to this
I am looking at Bonds’ achievements as a player this way. Baseball was loosing ground to the other sports. Then the homerun battle began. Fans came back to the game. That is what people wanted to see. They wanted 100 mph fastballs, curveballs that went from your eyes to your feet in a flash and a ball to be hit so far that our parks could not contain them. We wanted them. Too late for fans to cry about steriods. I was a fan before that and I still will be. The reason of my dislike for Bonds is what he does after he hits the ball. He stands there and watches it. If you want to stand around and watch something go play golf or in the NBA. Ruth even when he was old and over weight still ran. With his dad being who he is and his godfather being who he is Bonds should know a lot better then that. That is a lack of respect for baseball and I will not stand for that and that is the reason I will not chear for Bonds.
By dirt
May 29, 2006 08:35 PM | Link to this
Very intelligent Deano. Marry your sister did you. Calling you stupid, would just insult all the stupid folks in this world.
By Let's Move On
May 29, 2006 08:44 PM | Link to this
Those without sin let them cast the first stone. Baseball players have been juicin’ years and as Shultz rightly asks, what about all the juiced up pitchers Bonds hit against in prior years, or the ones who set pitching records, or perhaps other batters who were on the road to catching the Babe. I don’t hear anyone lamenting about that.
So, with that said, Bonds has gone past the 715 mark, he’s ahead of the Babe, sooner or later someone else will come along and do the same. Let’s move on.
By Joe
May 29, 2006 08:48 PM | Link to this
Bonds maybe the poster child for steroids but no one is talking about this strange absence of the Rocket whose career has also exploded with age. Maybe he took this little break to clear his system.
By Rafael Villanueva
May 29, 2006 08:53 PM | Link to this
Where were the Commisioner, the owners, the “clean” players and you the members of the press when all this was happening? When Canseco first spoke about it he was dismissed as a mal-content and now all of the sudden Bonds is the only bad guy. It now time to close the steroids chapter and move forward.
By Colin
May 29, 2006 09:17 PM | Link to this
Oh, get over it, folks. Ruth played at a time when the top minority players weren’t allowed in, thus facing a diluted pool that included white players who’d have no business being in MLB if it had been a true meritocracy. So Ruth’s numbers are tainted and inflated. There’s solid history suggesting Aaron and Mays and many others of their era used greenies during their time in MLB, so who’s to say their numbers are pure either? And who’s to say Bonds didn’t get hurt by facing pitchers who were juicing?Heck, we chuckle at the cheating efforts of guys like Gaylord Perry and Don Sutton loading up the ball.
Just chill out. No era in baseball history is pure. We look at it all through the lens of context. Bonds’ 715 is not the end of the world, and it sure as heck ain’t one of the worst moments ever in its history.
By Mike
May 29, 2006 10:12 PM | Link to this
After reading these comments, you now know how the 9-11 tragedy happened. American’s the world’s greatest hypocrites.
By Roy
May 29, 2006 10:17 PM | Link to this
How does anabolic-steroid-induced-muscle-mass make pitchers more effective?
By hamm
May 29, 2006 10:18 PM | Link to this
August 7, 2000 · Host Howard Berkes talks with Sandy Tolan, author of Me & Hank: A Boy and His Hero, Twenty-five Years Later. Hank Aaron eclipsed Babe Ruth’s career homerun record of 714 by 41, but Tolen says Aaron doesn’t get the attention he deserves, particularly in the Baseball Hall of Fame. Critics point out that Aaron played in more games and didn’t have Ruth’s style, but Tolan suspects Aaron’s outspokeness about race has affected his popularity. (5:46) Me and Hank: A Boy and His Hero, Twenty-Five Years Later by Sandy Tolan is published by Free Press; ISBN: 06848
If this is true and I have no reason that it is not. Hank did not use drugs and he was hated. why not Barry. they are both black and they both beat Babe’s record. read the book and see if you are a hater or just a reporter. Is it a fact of race. or just a fact.
By hamm
May 29, 2006 10:20 PM | Link to this
August 7, 2000 · Host Howard Berkes talks with Sandy Tolan, author of Me & Hank: A Boy and His Hero, Twenty-five Years Later. Hank Aaron eclipsed Babe Ruth’s career homerun record of 714 by 41, but Tolen says Aaron doesn’t get the attention he deserves, particularly in the Baseball Hall of Fame. Critics point out that Aaron played in more games and didn’t have Ruth’s style, but Tolan suspects Aaron’s outspokeness about race has affected his popularity. (5:46) Me and Hank: A Boy and His Hero, Twenty-Five Years Later by Sandy Tolan is published by Free Press; ISBN: 06848
If this is true and I have no reason that it is not. Hank did not use drugs and he was hated. why not Barry. they are both black and they both beat Babe’s record. read the book and see if you are a hater or just a reporter. Is it a fact of race. or just a fact.
By KluKlux
May 29, 2006 10:33 PM | Link to this
Nothing worse than a n**** with a couple bucks in his pocket!…
By leon
May 29, 2006 10:37 PM | Link to this
to all of the people who is disappointed about Barry breaking the Babe homerun record, don’t forget Barry still getting paid MILLION of DOLLARS$$$$$$$$$$$$
By calleigh
May 29, 2006 10:49 PM | Link to this
to gdg, get over your racist crap. how many blacks, hispanics, etc. do you think were great baseball players back in the 40’s? only jackie robinson had the talent and the guts to get out there to fight it and prove it. you want to talk about ‘only whites’ in sports and broadcasting, let’s look at the nba. i saw a commercial for the nba the other day and they actually had a white guy playing! i almost gell off the couch. the nba is probably 99% black. where are the whites and hispanics in this sport???!!! most of these players are a bunch of thugs anyway. how about the headline ‘don’t arrest me, i’m a basketball player’. give me a break! most of my black friends don’t even watch the nba because it makes the black race look like a bunch of flashy, money hungry baffoons. and barry bonds, he’s rude and a disgrace to baseball. i’ll bet even the great henry aaron did not even cheer for him on his ‘accomplishment’.
By Larry
May 29, 2006 11:13 PM | Link to this
Baseball players cheat all the time. It’s only cheating if you get caught. Gaylord Perry is in the Hall of Fame despite admitting to cheating. How many corked bats haven’t been detected? Pitchers get tossed every season for foreign substances on their person. Baseballs are scuffed or marred or cut by pitchers all the time. Ever heard of the spitball? Pine tar? STEAL signs? How many outfielders raise their glove in the air after trapping a liner? If the umpire doesn’t see it, it’s not cheating.You can take steroids in baseball-if you have a prescription. What makes you think that Ruth wasn’t drinking original Coca-Colas containing cocaine? Who’s to say that Aaron never tried an additive someone presented him? They all do it, (cheat)especially when competing for a job.
Say Shultz,where was the celebration when Sammy Sosa passed Ruth’s and Maris’s single season record in 1999 and 2001 or McGuire in 1999? You mean after passing them in 1998, further passing doesn’t count?
By Greg
May 29, 2006 11:23 PM | Link to this
Come on people, greenies do not help your performance as much as anabolic steroids. Use your brains.
By titothebear
May 29, 2006 11:24 PM | Link to this
You people standing up for theft and chemically induced excellence are a disgrace to any race. It’s pathetic to see you try to justify the purloining of the homerun record by an admitted thief. Like a burglar in the night, he’s come to claim that which he has no right to. The day will come, and it will be soon, when he is perp-walked out of a stadium and into the infamy he, so richly, deserves. His homeruns, since 1998, will be erased from the recordbooks and he will be sentenced to prison for perjury and for income tax evasion. You’ll cry and moan and blame the “white man” like you always do but the fault lies in the heart of darkness that beats, for now, within the chest cavity of the walking blimp Barry Bonds. Justice awaits him and, in its way, all of you!
By gawd
May 30, 2006 02:35 AM | Link to this
Stop blaming Bonds. Anyone who watched baseball for the last 10 years and had half a brain KNEW players were juicing and that MLB was looking the other way. This villifying of Bonds is far too convenient. MLB could have stopped this long ago!
By gawd
May 30, 2006 02:35 AM | Link to this
Stop blaming Bonds. Anyone who watched baseball for the last 10 years and had half a brain KNEW players were juicing and that MLB was looking the other way. This villifying of Bonds is far too convenient. MLB could have stopped this long ago!