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7/6/07
Barry Bonds Skipping Home Run Derby Personifies Career
READ MORE:
MLB, San Francisco Giants
by CriticalFanatic more posts by author
50
Barry Bonds was given the perfect opportunity to demonstrate he cares in the slightest about the fans. And yet again, he's turned it down. Big surprise.
 
He's been voted into the All Star game (supposedly) by the fans; given an opportunity to dazzle all of baseball with his splash after splay in McCovey Cove at home in front of his fans. It's tee'd up high for him. Handed on a silver platter. Could be that hard, Barry? Just for one night, pretend you're appreciative of the fans who pay your salary.

Barry gets frustrated when team after team avoids an encounter at the plate with an intentional walk. Whether you like him or not, you want to see him at the plate swinging. Barry wants to provide that when it means something to him, like a HR record for instance. But when it's only the fans who gain, he cares less. He's essentially IBB walked himself around the Home Run Derby.

"I just want to have a party with the people of San Francisco, basically. The fans have voted. I just want to have a big, huge party with them."

That couldn't be further from the truth. My words that are followed by minimal action. The truth is that Barry Bonds is hosting a party Monday night, not with the fans of San Francisco, with his elite peers. It's not about the fans.

Bonds had a chance to give to the fans experience, and once again has thought only of himself. Pretty typical.

Source: (MLB.com)
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7/6/07
1

Once again Barry haters can't cut him any slack.The man is over 40 years old.Did it ever occur to you that the home run derby is physically draining to an older player.

Bonds has ailments that happen to professional baseball players over 40.Yeah he's

trying to break a home run record.Shouldn't he save a little in the tank for that.He

sits out almost every week with some type of injury.Is he hurt or is he conserving

his energy?I say it dosn't matter.Hate him or like him we must realize what it takes

to be a (record setting home run hitting) baseball player over 40.I have not heard

of any other players not in the home run derby and going to parties, just Barry.

San Francisco fans get that a lot of people do NOT like Barry but there must be

something better to write about!

7/6/07
1
mrmickeys46 wrote:

Once again Barry haters can't cut him any slack.The man is over 40 years old.Did it ever occur to you that the home run derby is physically draining to an older player.

Bonds has ailments that happen to professional baseball players over 40.Yeah he's

trying to break a home run record.Shouldn't he save a little in the tank for that.He

sits out almost every week with some type of injury.Is he hurt or is he conserving

his energy?I say it dosn't matter.Hate him or like him we must realize what it takes

to be a (record setting home run hitting) baseball player over 40.I have not heard

of any other players not in the home run derby and going to parties, just Barry.

San Francisco fans get that a lot of people do NOT like Barry but there must be

something better to write about!

I give Barry some slack on this. 1) It is physically taxing. 2) What upside does he have? 3) It throws off your swing.

7/6/07
2
Ty wrote:
I give Barry some slack on this. 1) It is physically taxing. 2) What upside does he have? 3) It throws off your swing.

I will give you #1.  He's an old guy chasing a record.  I would be tempted not to want to put myself through that, too.  (However, I'm sure he has ways to regain his strength.)  

 

#2 - the upside is he shows that he cares about the fans.  Again, it's his choice, but this could be a good PR move for him at a time when he really needs it.  In a couple of weeks he's going to be at the top of the baseball world.   Will anyone really care?  I think taking a couple of hours to show the fans that you're human and you still love the game of baseball would go a long way.

 

#3 - I can't agree with the last point, though.  If you look at Ryan Howard's 2nd-half last year, I don't think you can say the Home Run Derby threw off his swing.  I know Howard wasn't a 40+ player, but I don't think it would throw him off that much.  He's been swinging long enough that he can handle it....


7/6/07
1
mrmickeys46 wrote:

Once again Barry haters can't cut him any slack.The man is over 40 years old.Did it ever occur to you that the home run derby is physically draining to an older player.

Bonds has ailments that happen to professional baseball players over 40.Yeah he's

trying to break a home run record.Shouldn't he save a little in the tank for that.He

sits out almost every week with some type of injury.Is he hurt or is he conserving

his energy?I say it dosn't matter.Hate him or like him we must realize what it takes

to be a (record setting home run hitting) baseball player over 40.I have not heard

of any other players not in the home run derby and going to parties, just Barry.

San Francisco fans get that a lot of people do NOT like Barry but there must be

something better to write about!

No...he doesn't need anything left in the tank to break the record. In fact, he needs to be in the derby, and somehow get injured, and permanently lose all ability to swing a baseball bat.

7/6/07
0
Pat wrote:
No...he doesn't need anything left in the tank to break the record. In fact, he needs to be in the derby, and somehow get injured, and permanently lose all ability to swing a baseball bat.

I never thought of it that way.....

 

Go, Barry, Go!


7/6/07
0
This is why I hate Bonds... nuff said.

7/6/07
3
Who says he has to hit any home runs anyone remember when Bret Boone was in the Home Run Derby? I hope he doesn't get a pitch to hit in the All Star Game because the AL thinks about how physically taxing hitting a baseball can be for poor old Barry.

7/6/07
0
Barry missed the boat on this one.  He has a chance to thank the fans one last time and won't do it because he'd rather prepare for his party with Jay Z.  BTW, I'm trying to score an invite to that party, but since I don't have one - Barry needs to be in the derby.

7/6/07
0

If Bonds cares for any fans its the SF fans.  They see him hit everyday and don’t need to see him hit some meaningless BP HRs.  The fans he's subbing the most is the other fans. Besides, Bonds has never done well in the HR Derby.

Plus, Bonds loves to defy the national media, and ESPN.  He seems to always take days off on days when ESPN is broadcasting the game nationally.

 

If the All-Star game was anywhere but SF he may have skipped out on the game entirely.  I want to hear that stadium when he’s announced.


7/6/07
0
Pat wrote:
No...he doesn't need anything left in the tank to break the record. In fact, he needs to be in the derby, and somehow get injured, and permanently lose all ability to swing a baseball bat.
CLASSLESS B1TCH!
Hoping for an injury to any player is one of the worst sports fan sin.  Pat are you sure your not a Philly fan on some level.

7/6/07
3
Beat_LA415 wrote:
CLASSLESS B1TCH!
Hoping for an injury to any player is one of the worst sports fan sin.  Pat are you sure your not a Philly fan on some level.
You're talking about Bonds, right?

7/6/07
1
Beat_LA415 wrote:
CLASSLESS B1TCH!
Hoping for an injury to any player is one of the worst sports fan sin.  Pat are you sure your not a Philly fan on some level.
Oh come on alot of people wanted Micheal Irvin to get hurt and that was like 10 years ago.. Can you please move on

7/6/07
1

Get Some Class.
I group anybody who wishes for or celebrates a player getting any kind of injury together with the people who send death threats to athletes.  There's no reason for any of that.  And there's not excuse either. 

You don't have to feel anything for him, hate him if you wish, but don't wish injury on him.

7/6/07
2
Beat_LA415 wrote:

Get Some Class.
I group anybody who wishes for or celebrates a player getting any kind of injury together with the people who send death threats to athletes.  There's no reason for any of that.  And there's not excuse either. 

You don't have to feel anything for him, hate him if you wish, but don't wish injury on him.

And I group anyone who takes performance enhancing drugs in with all the other cheaters. They have no right to play Major League Baseball, and they are a disgrace to baseball, all of sports, and this great country that has given them the opportunity to play a game for a living.

Barry Bonds deserves nothing but a trip OUT of professional baseball. At this point, I don't care how it happens. I will never feel pity for him, OR his fans.

7/6/07
1
The home run derby is a waste of time anyhow. Who cares?

7/6/07
0
MrNFL wrote:
The home run derby is a waste of time anyhow. Who cares?
Of all things said in this thread that I disagree with ... this might actually be the most. HR Derby is more fun than the All Star game in many respects. Very fan friendly, and a lot of fun to watch. Definitely not a waste of time.

7/6/07
0
MrNFL wrote:
The home run derby is a waste of time anyhow. Who cares?

It's not a waste of time at all. It is a time to be able to show off their talents while playing for the people that pay their salary! The derby is for the fans and that's it. But it's their little way of repaying all of us fans for allowing them to play the game that they love!

 Bonds turning down the opportunity to play is ridiculous! He needs to repay the fans that have stood by him even though he's an asshole. I would love to see him get intentionally walked the whole game just so that he can't get a homerun during the game. Maybe he should think about that when he says no to participating in the derby! Selfish bastard is all he is.

7/6/07
0
And what about any Giants fans that don't get to see him play all the time? What about Giants fans that live half way across the world (or country) and can't pick up the games? (I guess I don't even know if there are Giants fans anywhere else!). You're basically assuming that all Giants fans live in SF and can see him play whenever. I just feel bad for the fans that support his selfish ass!

7/6/07
0
Who cares whether he participates in a glorified BP session on national TV or not. 

I'd rather have Bonds skip the HR Derby, and only play one inning in the All-Star game and be rested for the Dodgers series and the second half.

7/6/07
1
Beat_LA415 wrote:
Who cares whether he participates in a glorified BP session on national TV or not. 

I'd rather have Bonds skip the HR Derby, and only play one inning in the All-Star game and be rested for the Dodgers series and the second half.
Keep him rested? The Giants are 10.5 out of the wild card. 11.5 out of the division. Keep him rested for what?

7/6/07
0
I don't care how far out of first we are right now.  I want to see Bonds starting in LF for the Giants as much as possible during the second half.  That all Bonds owes the fans.  Skip the HR Derby, make an appearance and get an AB in the All-Star Game.  Get ready to BEAT LA.

7/6/07
0
CriticalFanatic wrote:
Of all things said in this thread that I disagree with ... this might actually be the most. HR Derby is more fun than the All Star game in many respects. Very fan friendly, and a lot of fun to watch. Definitely not a waste of time.
All it is is watching guys do batting practice.  Booooooring IMO.  It's almost as bad as the dunk contest.

7/7/07
1
MrNFL wrote:
All it is is watching guys do batting practice.  Booooooring IMO.  It's almost as bad as the dunk contest.
1: The dunk contest is a little better.
2: We all realize it doesn't REALLY matter...it's just for fun. Relax, and enjoy it.
3: Coming from a guy who would rather watch offensive line drills, it's hard to take you seriously on this one.

7/7/07
0
I hope Bonds dies a horrible glorifying death. I hope he's diagnosed with cancer, and given 6 months to live. Then, only 3 months into this death sentence, he decides to go camping and gets mauled by a black bear.

Sorry for being so graphic

7/7/07
0
Beat_LA415 wrote:
I don't care how far out of first we are right now.  I want to see Bonds starting in LF for the Giants as much as possible during the second half.  That all Bonds owes the fans.  Skip the HR Derby, make an appearance and get an AB in the All-Star Game.  Get ready to BEAT LA.
your priorities are wrong. ur happy with just beating LA?

7/7/07
0
Eric wrote:
I hope Bonds dies a horrible glorifying death. I hope he's diagnosed with cancer, and given 6 months to live. Then, only 3 months into this death sentence, he decides to go camping and gets mauled by a black bear.

Sorry for being so graphic
Woah. I cant believe you can hate the guy THAT much.

7/7/07
1
(Edited by CUBBY4LIFE)
The second half? For Giants baseball there was no 1st half so how can there be a second half................. They suck! I don't hate them they are just a bad team in a real good division. As for the Homerun derby, 1: It is the best part of the all star break by far. 2: I don't want to see Barry in the derby in fact I do not want to see him in baseball at all! Why? Any player who gets to dictate to his manager when he plays is bad for baseball, did i fall to state that Bonds believes he is bigger then the game itself, thats not the all star game Iam talking about, it is baseball in general. The day Bonds leaves the game will be a great day for all baseball fans all over the world!

7/7/07
0
Pat wrote:
1: The dunk contest is a little better.
2: We all realize it doesn't REALLY matter...it's just for fun. Relax, and enjoy it.
3: Coming from a guy who would rather watch offensive line drills, it's hard to take you seriously on this one.

Offensive Line drills?  Just because I acknowledge the lines' existence unlike everyone else doesn't mean I watch to watch drills.

 

And what exactly is that enjoyable about guys hitting batting practice?  I just don't see how that's exciting at all.

7/7/07
2
MrNFL wrote:

Offensive Line drills?  Just because I acknowledge the lines' existence unlike everyone else doesn't mean I watch to watch drills.

 

And what exactly is that enjoyable about guys hitting batting practice?  I just don't see how that's exciting at all.

What's the point of watching ANY pro sports? It's to watch the guys who are the best of the best doing what they do best. No one is saying that the HR derby and the dunk contest are true measures of overall athletic skill. But it's fun to watch guys hit 500 foot home runs or throw down a 360 reverse windmill, and say wow...these guys are damn good. Sure, they might not be able to do the same thing in a game, but the skill level is unquestionable. It's just a little bit of a talent showcase. No one takes it that seriously...it's just for fun, and a treat for the fans.

And anyone who doesn't show up early for games to watch batting practice...they're just not true fans.

7/7/07
0

So for all the people who say Barry is disrespecting the fans of San Francisco and Major League Baseball for not participating in the contest, what's your opinion on Ken Griffey Jr not participating?  His team is doing terrible as our the Giants, he is older and has nearly 600 homers.  So why no mention of his bowing out of the contest?  Oh that's right, we would rather wish death or injury to Barry Bonds because of his ego,attitude and alleged steroid issues.  I hope Barry ties the record and then before he breaks it he retires and becomes the second governor of the state to be a former steroid user!

7/7/07
1
I didn't say he was older than Bonds.  I said he to is older.  I don't support Bonds as much as I was asking where are the people ? Griffey for skipping out?  Besides that would someone please put on this site a copy of anywhere in Bonds or any other major leaguer's contract where the line states that that player must participate in a homerun contest! 

7/7/07
0
huskerdoug2009 wrote:
I didn't say he was older than Bonds.  I said he to is older.  I don't support Bonds as much as I was asking where are the people ? Griffey for skipping out?  Besides that would someone please put on this site a copy of anywhere in Bonds or any other major leaguer's contract where the line states that that player must participate in a homerun contest! 
You did say he is older. Your exact wors were "So for all the people who say Barry is disrespecting the fans of San Francisco and Major League Baseball for not participating in the contest, what's your opinion on Ken Griffey Jr not participating?  His team is doing terrible as our the Giants, he is older and has nearly 600 homers.  So why no mention of his bowing out of the contest?" 

7/7/07
0
huskerdoug2009 wrote:
I didn't say he was older than Bonds.  I said he to is older.  I don't support Bonds as much as I was asking where are the people ? Griffey for skipping out?  Besides that would someone please put on this site a copy of anywhere in Bonds or any other major leaguer's contract where the line states that that player must participate in a homerun contest! 
You did say he is older. Your exact words were "So for all the people who say Barry is disrespecting the fans of San Francisco and Major League Baseball for not participating in the contest, what's your opinion on Ken Griffey Jr not participating?  His team is doing terrible as our the Giants, he is older and has nearly 600 homers.  So why no mention of his bowing out of the contest?" 

7/7/07
0
drewstapes wrote:
Barry missed the boat on this one.  He has a chance to thank the fans one last time and won't do it because he'd rather prepare for his party with Jay Z.  BTW, I'm trying to score an invite to that party, but since I don't have one - Barry needs to be in the derby.
"Missed the boat." Was that a kayak pun?

7/7/07
1

Can you people get off of Barry already? Ruth was a womanizing lush who was so fat and out of shape at the end of his career he couldn't play an entire game. Hank Aaron, while no one has any proof of any wrongdoing or any problems with his character, took way longer to get past Ruth then Barry did. If Barry's use of roids in the years when he hit more than 40-50 home runs pushed him to 60 or 73, it takes him 2 or 3 years longer to make it to Aaron's mark.

 

It doesn't matter anyway, Griffey may not catch the top 3 but would've if he wasn't injured so much. A-Rod is going to have the record when he's done. Somebody else will probably have it one day in the future.

 

And should we even start discussing all the players who have cheated before that are in the HOF??? Gaylord Perry's on the list and more I'm sure...

7/7/07
0
Pat wrote:
What's the point of watching ANY pro sports? It's to watch the guys who are the best of the best doing what they do best. No one is saying that the HR derby and the dunk contest are true measures of overall athletic skill. But it's fun to watch guys hit 500 foot home runs or throw down a 360 reverse windmill, and say wow...these guys are damn good. Sure, they might not be able to do the same thing in a game, but the skill level is unquestionable. It's just a little bit of a talent showcase. No one takes it that seriously...it's just for fun, and a treat for the fans.

And anyone who doesn't show up early for games to watch batting practice...they're just not true fans.
There is a lot of talent showcases, I just personally find the derby boring.  To me, it's just not interesting at all.  My personal opinion.

7/8/07
1
I think the key is "42 years old". Most players drop off EXTREMELY fast at that age. We've already seen some of that from Bonds. He will only get worse from here, and it will be quick.

7/8/07
1
Barry Bonds is a roid monkey. An idiot and a douche bag.  He does not deserve to be in the All-Star game.  His stats back it up.  The least that you could do is make an appearance in the Home Run Derby for his local fans.

7/8/07
0
Cbyup wrote:
Barry Bonds is a roid monkey. An idiot and a douche bag.  He does not deserve to be in the All-Star game.  His stats back it up.  The least that you could do is make an appearance in the Home Run Derby for his local fans.
You are my hero.

7/8/07
0
Phillygenius82 wrote:
You did say he is older. Your exact words were "So for all the people who say Barry is disrespecting the fans of San Francisco and Major League Baseball for not participating in the contest, what's your opinion on Ken Griffey Jr not participating?  His team is doing terrible as our the Giants, he is older and has nearly 600 homers.  So why no mention of his bowing out of the contest?" 
My point was he is also an older player,(38 years old) who has been in the league 20 years, (1987 draft) with a ton of homeruns and also turned down the opportunity to participate in the contest but yet no mention of him. 

 
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