Barry B*nds

I hate watching baseball on TV. It’s slow, boring and way too long. It’s not my cup of tea. Excluding the few random games that I stumble upon and watch, I only consistently watch two things each MLB season – the Home Run Derby and the World Series.\nThis season however, I’ve been caught watching more games – San Francisco Giants games, that is. \nWhy would a person who hates watching baseball watch a team with a 38-48 record sitting in last place in their division? The answer is the world-hated Barry Bonds, Barry B*nds, Cheater or whatever name you want to call him.\nFor those of you living under a rock, Bonds is sitting with 751 career home runs on his record, just four shy of the all-time home run record being held by Hank Aaron at 755 home runs. Barring a career-ending injury or an incredible slump, Bonds will break the record.\nEveryone outside the Bay area hates Bonds, but I’m here to defend him. Well, kind of.\nWe all know Bonds is on something. It may not be detectable, it may not even be steroids, but he is taking something that makes him have no neck. You can say he’s cheating and ask for the record books to have an asterisk next to his record, but you are missing the point. \nHere is why his achievement should still be celebrated and why everyone should get off his back:\nFirst off, Bonds brings increased fan ratings. As I said before and I will say again, I don’t watch baseball. But I do watch Bonds because I want to see sports history. He may be hated, but he is putting fans in the seats for a team that doesn’t win many games and has no chance at making the playoffs.\nNext, steroids don’t make you hit home runs. I can take steroids and still barely hit the ball to the outfield against these pro pitchers. It still takes talent to hit one home run, let alone 751.\nAlso, the Home Run Derby held at AT&T Park on Monday taught us all something. We learned that Bonds’ home field is not favorable to lefty batters. His accomplishment is that much more incredible knowing he’s hitting in a park made to keep lefties in play.\nIt wasn’t a coincidence that all the lefty batters were eliminated from the Home Run Derby in the first round this year. \nFinally, unlike most other professional sports, baseball’s batting records are set at points ready to be broken. It’s not like Wilt Chamberlain’s 100-point game or Wayne Gretzky’s career points records, both of which will not be broken for years and years to come. If or when Bonds breaks this record, don’t be surprised if A-Rod or Albert Puljos breaks the record a few years down the road. The bar isn’t high enough yet in baseball.\nDon’t get me wrong. I don’t promote cheating and I don’t want steroids in baseball. It will slowly ruin the game to the point of no return. But I do want everyone to get off Barry’s back.\nTake what he’s accomplishing in stride, congratulate him when the time comes and then watch his number get broken soon by someone else who might not have the same steroid allegations clouding his reputation – and who also might have a neck.