Not easy hearing cheers for Barry
By: STEVE SCHOLFIELD - Staff Writer | ∞
SAN DIEGO ---- It was a night Barry Bonds will never forget.
Bonds must have thought he was on some kind of performance-enhancing pharmaceutical product when he heard cheers from the fans at Petco Park on Saturday night. It's a place where fans regularly deride him and have, on one occasion, thrown an empty syringe at him.
A sold out crowd saw Bonds hit career home run No. 755 to tie Hank Aaron on the all-time list.
The hit came in the second inning, a 2-1 fastball delivered by Padres starter Clay Hensley. The pitch was outside and high, but Bonds crunched it like a 3-iron, line-driving the ball 382 feet off the facade of the second deck in left field.
As the ball bounced into the lower deck, a mad scramble ensued where Adam Hughes, 33, of La Jolla secured the ball.
The aftermath of the hit was surreal.
Bonds was cheered in San Diego. What's next, a welcome wagon party for the Raiders? Part of the Petco crowd initially booed, but realizing they had witnessed an historic moment, they began applauding. They then rose as one and began cheering Bonds. Any boos were garbled by the ongoing praise.
Whether they were cheering the individual or the accomplishment is open to debate.
All I know is Petco Park cheered a cheater.
The home run record is one of the most cherished in the sport and should be a cause for celebration. But because of Bonds' dubious character, no special ceremonies took place.
Bonds did not smile as he rounded the bases, but when he got to home plate, he picked up his son, Nikolai.
The rest of the Giants slowly walked out of the dugout to greet their ignominious teammate.
After exchanging congratulations, he went over to the stands and kissed his 8-year-old daughter, Aisha, and his wife, Liz.
"I want to thank the San Diego fans, I thought they were outstanding," Bonds said. "I really appreciate the way San Diego fans handled it."
Outside of the Bay Area, there is a universal dislike for Bonds. His alleged use of performance enhancing drugs makes any record he sets inauthentic.
He serves as a reminder that baseball's leaders lack a spine. To allow him to play shows a lack of competency among owners and commissioner Bud Selig's office.
And please don't give me that excuse that Bonds has never been found guilty. He testified to a grand jury that he thought he was taking flaxseed oil, but in reality he was taking illegal steroids.
End of story.
Selig issued a statement after the game: "Out of respect for the tradition of the game, the magnitude of the record and the fact that all citizens in this country are innocent until proven guilty, either I or a representative of my office will attend the next few games and make every attempt to observe the breaking of the all-time home run record."
What a bunch of hooey.
Baseball should have put Bonds on paid administrative leave; hold a hearing and either clear his name or fire him.
This procedure works when police officers and schoolteachers, for example, are suspected of inappropriate behavior.
If it works for those honorable professions why not baseball? The answer is the sport is gutless.
In the public court, Bonds is guilty of cheating.
And in the department of irony comes this little bit of news: The man he hit the home run off, Hensley, was suspended for 15 games for using performance-enhancing substances when he was in the minor leagues.
When asked about Hensley and the fact both are linked to steroids, Bonds replied: "I don't think we are here to discuss those matters. I think we have a great policy in baseball and just leave it at that."
Through the years San Diego fans have witnessed some special moments.
Bonds' godfather, Willie Mays, hit his 600th career home run at San Diego (now Qualcomm) Stadium in 1969.
Rickey Henderson collected his 3,000th hit on the last day Qualcomm was open to baseball in 2003.
And Trevor Hoffman set the all-time saves record at Petco Park last year.
Bonds' teammate Dave Roberts, one of the classiest acts in the sport, said before the game he was hoping fans would embrace the feat.
"The record is bigger than a Giants-Dodger rivalry or a Giants-Padres rivalry," Roberts said. "It is about baseball. I think everyone in this ballpark are baseball fans and should appreciate the moment."
I would appreciate the moment more if Bonds were a standout individual. I would appreciate it more if I thought all of those 755 home runs came because of his ability.
Steve Scholfield is senior sports columnist for the North County Times. He can be reached at (760) 740-3509 or stevescho@cox.net.
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Just another Junkie... wrote on Aug 5, 2007 10:02 AM:Barry Bonds and other Performance Enhancing Drug Users should be Banned from ALL Sports. Period! The message we are sending to Society is that Drug Usage is not Only O.K., but Recommended. This is the WRONG MESSAGE! Ban This and ALL Junkies from Sports.
proud of san diego wrote on Aug 5, 2007 10:42 AM:I am glad Bonds got cheers. It shows the class our city has. Maybe you should go write for New York, they would appreciate your opinion. I am not a fan of Bonds but I am proud of how our city treated the situation. I am not judge and jury and I refuse to convict someone on rumors!
Giants fan in San Diego wrote on Aug 5, 2007 12:10 PM:I find it interesting that baseball writers, who make their living on the sport, generally prefer to pillory Bonds but fail to take to task the owners, players union and major league baseball. They have allowed the abuses to continue because it pays for "the Show" including basball writers salaries. I am not a Bonds fan, in fact as a lifelong Giants fan I was in the majority who expressed their opinion to Giants management last summer that #25 not be resigned. But hey, it puts meat in the seats as they say. So stay up there on your high horses sportswriters and continue to collect your salaries as part of the Circus while condemning the players but not doing anything to change the situation.
jack wrote on Aug 5, 2007 3:29 PM:Why anyone could be a fan of such a useless sport is beyond me. Just do away with all the cazillionair boys playing their game and the rest of us would be better off. Basketball too and I'm just as fed up with the national felony league. Make em all work for a living. Thugs, drugs and mugs.
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