Barry Bonds

 

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Brian M.

Oakland, CA

I'm no Bonds apologist, but, you have to place Barry into an appropriate historical/sociological context before you draw any final conclusions. He is an incredibly divisive figure, maybe the most divisive in sports, drawing either unconditional loyalty, or full-blown contempt, and both of these sentiments seem to be correct ones.

Those who have followed the Giants for the last decade have seen Bonds perform feats that have defied the limits of the game - clean or not (and he wouldn't be the first dirty player). These feats, and the outright blissful moments they have generated for S.F. fans have earned Barry a serious mulligan locally. Along with this superlative play, Bonds has offered a sometimes scowling, sometimes arrogant, and always stubborn and reactive public persona that understandably turns most sports fans against him.

However, his legacy will be legendary, like it or not, in the same way that Ty Cobb (an incredibly spiteful person), or Pete Rose (are you kidding me!!!), are legendary figures in baseball, and it should be. If we are to take sports as a metaphor for life, we need figures like Bonds who have reached the pinnacle of their endeavors despite (or perhaps because of) their flaws. Personally, I hope he makes it to 756, just so we can lay to rest the tired and overly nostalgic hero worship of Hank Aaron, and try on something new for the next thirty years.

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Scott H.

Campbell, CA

Out of yelp's sphere?

Barry Bonds.
greatest  hitter of all time (IMO);
steroids or not (immaterial);
don't  miss a chance to see Barry hit before he retires.

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