Within the next week Barry Bonds will break Henry Aaron's career home run record of 755. It really is an incredible achievement when you consider the amount of time and consistency he has spent at the top levels of the game to break one of its most cherished records.
I can remember back when Aaron broke Babe Ruth's record 714 in 1976. A record which stood unmatched for 41 years. The media was in a high frenzy and almost every day there was some sort of an Aaron watch as he closed in on the Babe.
The Barry Bonds watch is somewhat muted because of the issue of steroids that surrounds Bonds. I am not in the camp that holds much stock in the idea that Bond's achievement is any less significant because of the controversy.
At the highest levels of competition through out the business world (sports is a business) there is a constant and diligent effort to operate at the margins. Someone is always on the edge trying to take any advantage whatever to achieve their goals. As I recall there is a line from NASCAR that goes something like "if you ain't cheatin you ain't competin." Baseball has some of its own examples in the Hall of Fame particularly in the spitball or vaseline ball categories.
It would be one thing if perhaps Bonds was the only player in the game or perhaps one of a few that stretched the limits of the rules or even good judgement. This does not seem to be the case since there has been constant reports of steroid use through out almost all the sports establishment for a decade or so or at least a long time prior to it gaining national attention.
My point is that if Bonds were trying to increase his production by that means there were also a good many pitchers he was facing that were bigger and stronger because of the same reasons. The fact of the matter is Bonds still had to come to the plate and hit the ball. He did that with tremendous consistency over his 21 year career to date.
A simple look at the entire career of Bonds shows that he has long been at the very pinnacle of the game. In every statistical category Bonds numbers stand out. His entire career can be seen here http://www.baseball-reference.com/b/bondsba01.shtml. It would be worth noting that not only is his offensive production staggering in every category but he was also an eight time gold glove winner in the field for the Pirates and Giants.
As with all records some one will break any that Bonds sets. Alex Rodriguez for example may be the one to put Barry in second place. For the moment however, Barry Bonds has been the greatest player in the game for the past 21 years. He was no stranger to devout followers of the game as his father was a triple threat when he played in the league. His arrival on the scene was met with much anticipation and expectations and over the past 21 years Barry Bonds has not disappointed.
The guy deserves the credit due him.
