Bonds is Not a Giant (Next Year, Anyway)
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Finally, the San Francisco Giants are going to get rid of Barry Bonds. Finally, they’re going to start rebuilding for good. Finally, they’re going to move past all the issues about sportsmanship, manners, ethics, and other controversies that have surrounded Barry’s accomplished yet clouded tenure in San Francisco.
This will be a good thing for both sides. As mentioned, the Giants can finally stop worrying about all the negatives that Barry brings. Obviously there’s the steroids and the strained relationships with fans, coaches, the press, and management. There’s also his age, health, and his declining abilities on the field. He still has some power, though not as much as earlier in the decade when he went from a 500 home run hitter to having a chance to break Hank Aaron’s record. But his speed has gone down, as well as his defensive abilities and his desire to play the game. It’s hard to be an everyday player at the age of 42, much less a five-tool player that he was earlier in his career, or even a few years ago. The Giants have milked the cash cow from Barry’s “accomplishments” as much as they could; Bonds is only sixty-five hits or so away from 3,000, but with the relatively light coverage (from worldwide media, and even national media except for ESPN) given to Bonds’ 73 home run year in 2001 or even his quest for 756 this year, why would anybody care about 3,000 hits, which although a high achievement is not a record? It’s time to turn the page and focus on getting back into chasing championships and developing players who can help the team do that, rather than chasing after as much money as can be had from Barry.
This will be good for Barry too, as he could use a change of scenery. Fifteen years in the same place is a long time, and not having to deal with a young and unsuccessful clubhouse will be refreshing. It is true that the only fans who love Barry right now are those in San Francisco, but wherever he goes, he’s actually going to gain followers as people support their home teams more than they loathe Barry. As others have mentioned, the perfect place for him to go is to the American League and be a designated hitter. All he has to do is hit and concentrate on getting to 3,000; he won’t have to go after balls in the outfield or be criticized as much for lazy play. Furthermore, the American League is all about straight hitting and less about strategy, so there will be less worries about stealing or taking the extra base, with all the big boppers in the lineup. Texas, Oakland, and Minnesota have been mentioned, and others will surely pop up as well in the coming months.
The timing of the announcement of this being Barry’s last year in San Francisco may not have been ideal; for some reason Barry has said that he wished he had known sooner so that he could’ve celebrated with the fans of San Francisco. (When did he start liking fans?) But things may not always be what you want Barry, and in this case steroids won’t help.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barry_bonds
http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/
