bonds and the numbers

[Velcro]

How can people say no one cares... this is the biggest cloud around baseball since the black sox scandal!

[smazza]

661 looked so sweet

i saw it live on fox sports net

vg- i will respond later to your good question.

[___ Eats It]

For the record, McGwire, Sosa, Giambi, et al are all suspect in my book as well.  I'm not a Bonds hater, I'm a cheater hater.

Gimme a skinny Ted Williams jacking them over the bullpen in Fenway without the assistance of Roids any day of the week over a roided up fathead freak like Bonds, McGwire, or Sosa.

Smazz, people want home runs, but they want the game to be played on the level.  The great thing about baseball is the 100+ years of history, and if you're distorting that history by juicing up, what's the point of even following the game anymore, since the competitive standard (and the record book) has been tainted forever?

[Velcro]

and to nip smazz's arguement in the buttocks... Gaylord Perry is on my dislike list too.

[KnightsRule]

661 looked so sweet

i saw it live on fox sports net

vg- i will respond later to your good question.

I see the guy who got ball 660 out of the bay gave it to Barry who in turn gave the fan lary ellison an autographed jersey.  Apparently the team gave the guy 6 tix right behind home plate too. The guy gave the tix to his family members and went back to the bay in his kayak and amazingly enough also got ball 661.  Bonds told him he should keep it. Good karma?

[Velcro]

good for him... too bad its bond's ball not Willie Mays'

[smazza]

vg at least you are consistent but no body else is.

if perry is in hall  cheating simply is  not a criteria for denying entry to hall

[Bullshiznitz]

But once again, at the time of Bonds' suspected use, the substance wasnt illegal nor outlawed by MLB, so how is that cheating?  Probably atleast 50-75% of major leaguers have used either Creatine or sometype of "uppers" (caffeine pills, ephedra, etc...). They didnt have these during Ruths time either, so does that throw out all statistics for the past 5-10 years for everyone.  

[Velcro]

Creatine isn't illegal, steroids are...

that is like the "You drink and you are 18, so why can't i smoke pot or do drugs... both are "wrong" so you can't say anything about it" arguement...

Alcohol isn't illegal, it is sold in stores... it has regulations but its not illegal.

Drugs are illegal...

creatine is not illegal...

see where i am going?

[smazza]

      Let's set aside those rumors of steroid use for a day. Let's ignore his difficult personality as well. For one day, let's salute only that other side of Barry Bonds. He's the best hitter you've ever seen, isn't he?

 

Barry Bonds somehow manages to hit home runs on pitches that don't seem remotely hittable.  

 

Go ahead and make a case for anyone else.

Ken Griffey?

At Griffey's very best, you've got a really good argument. Problem is -- sadly, we haven't seen enough on the field the last few years.

Mark McGwire?

Watching him hit was an absolute pleasure. He had such plate discipline, such a beautiful swing. He was the whole package

       

There's a long list of others, from Alex Rodriguez and Tony Gwynn to Eddie Murray and George Brett and Paul Molitor and Robin Yount.

If you're older -- and I am -- you might argue for Willie Mays or Hank Aaron or Mickey Mantle.

In the end, you'd probably have to take Bonds over any of them.

He left Arizona State with a difficult tag to fulfill. He was going to be a future star. He was going to be the next Willie Mays.

That's a huge burden to place on a kid.

Eighteen years and 661 home runs later, he has surpassed every expectation.

If steroid use eventually tarnishes his image, remember this. He was baseball's best hitter before he bulked up and before rumors of steroids began to dog him.

 

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He has maintained his desire and his work ethic even now as he approaches his 40th birthday and at a time when his career earnings (salary only) are in the $113 million range.

As you probably know by now, Bonds hit the 659th home run of his career on Opening Day.

Astros ace Roy Oswalt threw him a 94-mph fastball on the outside corner of the plate, at around the knees. Normal human beings don't do what Bonds did next. He took that outside pitch and pulled it to right. He didn't just pull it, he vaporized it.

The ball seemed to just miss Astros second baseman Jeff Kent and cleared the right-field fence by only a few feet. Right fielder Richard Hidalgo barely had time to move.

On Tuesday, Bonds hit No. 661, passing his godfather Willie Mays and leaving him behind only Hank Aaron (755) and Babe Ruth (714) on the all-time list.  

 

 

· Bonds Hits No. 661 in Giants' Win

· Will Barry Catch Ruth This Season?

 

 

After Bonds' 660th homer Monday, Brewers manager Ned Yost was asked the usual questions about why he even allowed his young pitcher, Matt Kinney, to pitch to Bonds.

What makes Bonds' accomplishments even more remarkable -- as if they're not remarkable enough already -- is that he sees, maybe, one or two hittable pitches per game.

In most tight situations, opposing managers walk Bonds.

Yost had a great answer, maybe the best any manager has come up with in recent years. "He's never going to get better if he doesn't execute in those situations,'' Yost said. "Look, we have the ability to give on-the-job training to guys that have a chance to be fairly good pitchers. He (Kinney) has to learn to deal with those situations before he's going to be successful. If you keep taking the situation out of his hands, you're not getting anywhere.''

Kinney now has a place in history. He's the 390th pitcher to give up a Bonds jack.

"You want to try to play the game right,'' Yost said. "Maybe I'm just not smart enough to walk Barry Bonds every time. I enjoy the game part of it. I thoroughly believe our players need to cope with these situations, to execute in those situations if they're going to get to the next level.''

On Tuesday, Bonds hit No. 661 against the Brewers reliever Ben Ford, thus beginning the countdown to the Babe's 714.

"No. 660 was the one,'' Bonds said. "That's the one that will be on my desk forever. I don't feel like I'm ahead of Willie because Willie is my mentor. He always will be.''

 

 

Brewers catcher Gary Bennett spoke for everyone in baseball when he said: "I can't comprehend what he's doing.''