The Jackass That Is Barry Bonds
An unreal moment in sports is happening right now, and it's going largely untouched by the media. Barry Bonds is sitting out of HIS Home Run Derby.
How is it his you ask? Try this. Bonds, who by the end of the season will have hit more home runs than anyone else on this planet, plays for the San Francisco Giants. The Home Run Derby is being played in San Francisco.
AT&T Park, home of the Giants, was built with features that make it very easy for Barry Bonds to hit home runs. Notably that really short right-field wall that makes it easy for him to plunk dingers into the cove.
With that information in mind, you would think this Home Run Derby is practically designed for Bonds to win. You would be right. And even that, it doesn't matter if he wins, because hey, this is the Home Run Derby. The most fan-friendly and pressure-free baseball event of the year.
But, Bonds has elected not to even play in his Home Run Derby. His reason...
Why the hell can't you sit on a damn chair for an hour and then go up there and do what you do for a living for 10 minutes? You sit, and then you stand up and swing at baseballs. If someone told me I could do that in front of 40,000 people cheering for me, I would be jumping for joy.
But not Barry, not even for his fans.
It is at this point that you have to ask the people of the Bay Area what is wrong with this guy?
Barry Bonds lives a life that is not created by himself, it is created by the fans. The fans that go through the turnstiles game after game. Bonds salary is paid by those fans. Everything Bonds owns would be nothing, without the legions of Giants fans.
Sure, Bonds doesn't get a salary bonus from the Giants for participating in the Home Run Derby (like the $100,000 he gets for the All Star Game), but the fans are the ones who voted him into the All Star Game in the first place. The least he could do for them would be play in the Home Run Derby.
The sad fact of this entire matter is that Barry Bonds is squandering what could have been an entire year that would be remembered only for his performance. A chance to ignite the sports world and gain the interest of even casual fans has been lost by the fact that Bonds consistently bites the hand that feeds him. Year after year, Bonds abrasive personality turns off legions of fans.
Unlike the exciting record chase of 1998 featuring Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa or the record breaking performance of Cal Ripken Jr. where a nation sat captivated by the love of the game and the people that seemingly enjoyed playing it, Bonds will stand alone with his achievement.
While the all-time home run mark of Hank Aaron's is safe for another week, the refusal of Bonds to play in a no-pressure situation in front of his own fans and a plethora of television viewers, like myself, forever seals his reputation as The Jackass That Is Barry Bonds.
How is it his you ask? Try this. Bonds, who by the end of the season will have hit more home runs than anyone else on this planet, plays for the San Francisco Giants. The Home Run Derby is being played in San Francisco.
AT&T Park, home of the Giants, was built with features that make it very easy for Barry Bonds to hit home runs. Notably that really short right-field wall that makes it easy for him to plunk dingers into the cove.
With that information in mind, you would think this Home Run Derby is practically designed for Bonds to win. You would be right. And even that, it doesn't matter if he wins, because hey, this is the Home Run Derby. The most fan-friendly and pressure-free baseball event of the year.
But, Bonds has elected not to even play in his Home Run Derby. His reason...
“Nope,” Bonds said Thursday when asked about the Derby. “Especially when you’re 42. It’s not that you don’t want to, it’s that you just can’t anymore. You can’t. It’s too long. Too much waiting. Too much sitting around. You can’t do that.”Clearly sitting around makes a professional athlete very tired.
Why the hell can't you sit on a damn chair for an hour and then go up there and do what you do for a living for 10 minutes? You sit, and then you stand up and swing at baseballs. If someone told me I could do that in front of 40,000 people cheering for me, I would be jumping for joy.
But not Barry, not even for his fans.
It is at this point that you have to ask the people of the Bay Area what is wrong with this guy?
Barry Bonds lives a life that is not created by himself, it is created by the fans. The fans that go through the turnstiles game after game. Bonds salary is paid by those fans. Everything Bonds owns would be nothing, without the legions of Giants fans.
Sure, Bonds doesn't get a salary bonus from the Giants for participating in the Home Run Derby (like the $100,000 he gets for the All Star Game), but the fans are the ones who voted him into the All Star Game in the first place. The least he could do for them would be play in the Home Run Derby.
The sad fact of this entire matter is that Barry Bonds is squandering what could have been an entire year that would be remembered only for his performance. A chance to ignite the sports world and gain the interest of even casual fans has been lost by the fact that Bonds consistently bites the hand that feeds him. Year after year, Bonds abrasive personality turns off legions of fans.
Unlike the exciting record chase of 1998 featuring Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa or the record breaking performance of Cal Ripken Jr. where a nation sat captivated by the love of the game and the people that seemingly enjoyed playing it, Bonds will stand alone with his achievement.
While the all-time home run mark of Hank Aaron's is safe for another week, the refusal of Bonds to play in a no-pressure situation in front of his own fans and a plethora of television viewers, like myself, forever seals his reputation as The Jackass That Is Barry Bonds.
posted by Jeramey @ 7/09/2007 02:56:00 PM
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