Well, it finally happened.Much to the dismay of many baseball fans, Barry Bonds did not blow out his knee bumbling around in left field, nor did he retire at 755 career home runs, nor did he slip in the shower and hit his 'roided-up, oversized head on the side of the tub thereby putting him out for the rest of the season.
None of those things happened before he became the all-time home run king.
In a perfect world, Barry Bonds hitting career home run number 756 would be unanimously celebrated, as would be the man who achieved that titanic accomplishment. I always thought I'd remember where I was when someone broke the all-time home-run record.
Then again, we don't live in a perfect world, so I'm not really sure why everyone is so surprised/saddened that this record is clouded in controversy. In addition, I think I'll eventually forget that I was in my room in St. Pete JUST about to go to sleep a few minutes before midnight when the record-breaking home run happened.
I mean, even when my boy Alex Rodriguez breaks this record in the next decade, who knows what kind of allegations they'll be lobbing his way by that time. That and the fact that everyone (including a good portion of Yankee fans) hates the guy.
But nevermind that, we're talking about Bonds here. It's my first sports-related column in a long time, but I AM what you'd call a sports freak and I've been following the chase nearly every step of the way. As someone that REALLY hates cheaters, I have to say, I'm not nearly as outraged as I thought I would be.
Also, one-sentence paragraphs in sports columns are dramatic.
You see everyone's running around, being all outraged and saying that Bonds isn't the real home run champion, and that they should place an asterisk next to his name, and so on and so forth. Well, let's be realistic here, the asterisk thing isn't gonna happen. I mean it's just not. If you're gonna put an asterisk on Bonds, then you have to put an asterisk on nearly every significant player of this era who we're pretty sure have used steroids (Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, etc.) and some that, when you REALLY look at their situations, probably have (Roger Clemens).
Baseball will never do this because, well, they benefited greatly from the home run explosion in the mid-to-late-90's when the sport was hurting for fans following the strike. I would never say the steroid problem it was baseball's fault (or the media, or managers or owners) because that lets off the hook professional baseball players who are adults and made the decision to use a substance that, while it wasn't being tested for in the sport, was illegal and, you know, wrong. I can understand why players did it because they wanted a competitive advantage, but it's still, you know, wrong.
Then again, attendance at ballparks IS at an all-time high, TV ratings are healthy, and there were tens of thousands of (admittedly biased) fans in San Francisco that didn't seem to mind Barry breaking the record. I mean, hey...I like watching home runs, and so do a lot of other people. They're slightly more electrifying than a sacrifice fly or grounding to the right side of the infield when there's a man on second to move him over to third.
Still, the main reason I'm personally not outraged is because this is baseball — a sport more obsessed with numbers than any other. And the real records are there, and always will be there. To me, personally, Hank Aaron will still be the all-time home run king, the same way Roger Maris is still the single-season home run king with 61.
That being said, you can't completely discount what Bonds and other players of this era have done and will do. Bonds, specifically is just too great of a player...look at the numbers (2,900+ hits, 756HRs, 7 MVPs, almost 2,000RBI, etc). He's a brilliant player. He's not just some flash in the pan who bulked up and had three or four great seasons. You HAVE to be an all-time great to hit 756. This is not something you do by accident. You don't sneak up on 756! Also, while everyone wants to focus on the heavy hitters, there have been a fair share of pitchers who have been busted for using banned substances as well.
It's just that Bonds (and McGwire and Sosa and A-Rod and Albert Pujols, as well as several pitchers) will have done it all during an era where steroid use was rampant. They're all a product of their time, the same way certain pitchers back in the early 20th century racked up an insane number complete games and wins during the dead ball era when offensive production wasn't what it is today. They're a product of their time, the same way Babe Ruth was because he never had to contend against minority players during his career.
It's a different game now and, whether you like him or not (I personally don't like him because Bonds seems to be an egotistical and rude jackass), Bonds is the best player in baseball...or at least what's become of baseball.
No comments:
Post a Comment