Originally posted by 9erReign:
Originally posted by Ninerjohn:
Not even the greatest SF Giant of all time. Bonds was obviously great but his numbers are tainted and always will be. It is a shame because he didnt need to do roids to be a Hall of Famer
But he was the greatest of his generation and he knew it. But to prove it to everyone else he had to level the playing field.
This is a great point, and something I dont think anyone really takes into account. Id bet 70% of the game was dirty during that era, and 98% were using some kind of performance enhancer like greenies.
Itd be one thing if Bonds was the only guy cheating, but it was the culture. Doesnt make it right, but it shouldnt taint the fact that he was the best player of his generation.
Also, "cheating" means you were breaking rules. Major League Baseball did not have the substances Bonds was taking on the banned list, which meant he wasnt using anything illegal. Never even tested positive. The reputation he gets is from the way the media portrays him, which is through a biased opinion.
In time, I think as the bitter media gets older and new generations come through, Bonds will be looked at as the best of his era, regardless of what he used.
Like ive said before, every era in baseball had cheaters. If you put asterisks by one guy, youd have to put them everywhere. The game of baseball itself is inherently unfair as it is. What helps a career more, steroids, or playing at Coors Field before the humidor? One is cheating, and one is not? They both provide significant advantages over others not benefitting from them.
If you were able to reveal every players' secrets and find out everything that everyone did in a career, be it stealing signs, doctoring the ball, taking PED's, corking bats, standing a couple inches in front of the slab, caffeine pills, juiced baseballs, etc, how many players would be 100% innocent? Probably almost none.
Its weird to me that people get so upset that players juiced to hit more HR's, but then say the real HR king is a guy who played most of his career in a home park nicknamed "the launching pad". How many older generation fans thought Hank Aaron passing Babe Ruth because he played in a tiny park was BS, and Ruth should still hold the real record? An advantage is an advantage, regardless of morality.
Its just sad that we all witnessed the most feared hitter in baseball history break the all time HR record, and we cant even enjoy it because were too caught up with HOW it was done. He still had to hit the ball. He got 1 pitch to hit a night, and he never missed it. Thats remarkable beyond any steroid aid. Bob Gibson has one of the greatest pitching seasons ever on a raised mound, but theres no asterisk.