A time of shame for Bonds, baseball
March 17, 2006, Times-Herald Editorial
San Francisco Giants superstar Barry Bonds has indicated no shame, remorse nor concern for his alleged use of illegal substances to cheat his way into the record books.
The use of the word "alleged" hardly seems necessary. The thorough documentation and interviews in "Game of Shadows," a book by two San Francisco Chronicle reporters, removes any reasonable doubt to all but the most delusional of Bonds apologists: Bonds used a vast array of performance-enhancing drugs - steroids, human growth hormone, a woman's fertility drug and more -Ð for at least five seasons beginning in 1998.
Why did he do it? It's hard to truly know for sure, since Bonds, acting all the world as if he's above such serious allegations, solid, detailed evidence and exhaustive research, isn't saying. According to the book's authors, it's because he was jealous of the Mark McGwire-Sammy Sosa home run dramatics of 1998.
Bonds does not challenge the book. He shrugs it off with, "I won't even look at it. For what? There's no need to."
An innocent man would be incensed. He would rise up to defend his reputation, undoubtedly slapping lying reporters with an easy libel suit.
But if Bonds feels no shame, our society and Bonds' irresponsible supporters are to blame.
Bonds is not censured, nor is he barred from playing, nor has any legal action been taken against him.
Instead, he is about to star in his own reality television series. ESPN, its heads apparently as deep in the sand as those of the San Francisco Giants organization, promotes the April 4 kickoff of the show by stating:
"From sports icon to commercial spokesperson along with his philanthropic missions, Bonds proves to be one of the most recognizable sports figures in the country. It is his longevity as a superstar and all-around greatness that will navigate his course to the Hall of Fame."
Ugh.
Bonds just returned from having the president of the Dominican Republic host a dinner in his honor. He recently received the "Willie Mays Award" from the Professional Baseball Scouts Foundation. He touts his skill and lavish lifestyle while shunning any acknowledgment of the firestorm around him on his own, self-serving and widely read blog.
He is defended by a group of naive apologists and fans who dismiss illegal, often deadly, substance abuse by claiming that sports is "entertainment," and to whom seeing another Bonds' home run is more important than seeing Bonds' play fairly. Such stubborn, misguided loyalty to a narcissistic star who has consistently gone out of his way to be unpleasant to teammates and fans alike is a sad sight, indeed.
Entertainment? "Professional" wrestling is entertainment. Baseball is a sport, a competitive sport that has become entertaining as well because the athleticism, intelligence and - at least in the past - level playing field for players made it intriguing and exciting. The standings, records and statistics are as intricate - and sacred - a part of the fabric of the game as the balls and the bats. They are not listed in the books under "entertainment."
Still more fans dismiss concerns about illegal substances with a breezy "it doesn't matter," or the illogical "just because you take
steroids doesn't mean you can hit a home run."
Folks, they are called performance-enhancing drugs for a reason. And baseball stars, even those as talented as Bonds, don't just produce meteoric rises in home run totals at the same time they take on a freakishly cartoonish new physique without something unseemly at play.
We now know Bonds' "record" season of 73 home runs of 2001 deserves a huge asterisk. And now, as he closes in on the two most cherished marks in all of sports - Babe Ruth's 714 home runs and Hank Aaron's 755 – baseball and its fans have some soul-searching to do.
Given the evidence of fraud we have in front of us, we urge the family of the legendary Ruth, as well as Aaron himself, to stay away from any "celebration" the Giants or Major League Baseball should be tasteless enough to conduct. As for fans who applaud the achievement as if no foul play is at work here, well that's your call, but we strongly suggest that the fan who retrieves one of the "historic" baseballs in question promptly toss it back on the field.
One thing is for sure. Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig has to do something about Bonds, and handing him a plaque after a so-called record-breaking homer isn't it. A formal investigation - even if it includes McGwire and others - would be a nice start.
The records, meanwhile, still hold a special place, despite the out-of-whack emphasis on home runs, a desperate, lopsided take on the game that came about to lure fans back after the 1994 baseball strike.
Today, the need to have a home run star on a team makes owners and managers turn their heads to the illegal substances it is obvious their stars take.
This is a critical health issue. Fans supporting juiced-up superstars contribute to a national problem where children see these superstars and begin taking body-damaging steroids as early as middle school to bulk up to compete.
To ignore, dismiss or deny Bonds' substance abuse is to contribute to a serious problem that undermines sports and endangers players and impressionable youth.
Major League Baseball, the San Francisco Giants and the legal system need to confront this problem immediately.
Bonds' swollen head is not just a metaphor for his arrogance. It's physical evidence that his health is in jeopardy.
His superstar influence means his drug abuse has vast ripple effects: He is jeopardizing the health of other athletes who must do the same to their bodies if they wish to compete. His unaccountability means baseball records from clean baseball players of the past get smashed by this cheating giant.
And young athletes learn that in this world, taking steroids that will destroy your body and that give you an unfair, unnatural edge is not prosecuted nor condemned.
It gets you a reality television show and dinner with kings.
