Bonds Depreciation

Barry Bonds is arguably the most hated athlete in professional sports. A few nights ago I had the opportunity to see the Cardinals-Giants game at Busch Stadium and, like in most ballparks these days, the fans had it out for Barry. His slightest involvement in any situation aroused the ire of the crowd. An announcer would speak his place in the starting lineup, and the fans would begin to hiss; a Cardinal would pop out routinely to left, and thousands would begin to jeer; the loudspeakers would announce his name as he strolled to the plate, and the forty-thousand plus in attendance would boo so loudly that you would think Don Denkinger had returned to Busch.

One thing became clear that Saturday evening. Barry Bonds has more enemies than Fidel Castro.

If you were to ask your average baseball fan why they dislike Bonds, his answer would probably include some mention of steroids. Bonds himself has admitted to taking performance enhancing drugs, but lost a great deal of respect by claiming that he did so unwittingly by using some type of laced topical cream. I believe, however, that our river of hatred runs much deeper than the steroids. Names like McGwire, Sosa, Giambi and Palmeiro are all synonymous with the juice, but only Bonds’ generates such singular scorn.

Although there are probably more reasons than we can count for why we hate Barry Bonds, I’ve listed what I believe to be the big three.

1) He has no respect for the game of baseball.

The nephew of Bobby Bonds and the godson of Willie Mays, Bonds comes from one the greatest baseball families in the history of the game. While he possesses talent comparable to either of them, Bonds lacks their class. Where Bobby Bonds and Willie Mays both epitomized athletic class, Barry typifies the narcissistic, unapproachable, larger-than-life superstar. He berates reporters and fans without hesitation. He is a clubhouse pariah.

2) He’s not a team player

To be completely honest, there have been few superstars in baseball history who have had such incredible talent but a lack of desire to help his team. When you look at other MLB superstars—guys like David Ortiz, Albert Pujols, and Derek Jeter—they all step up and lead their teams at crucial times—both in the dugout in the press.

3) Steroids Allegations

As I’ve already mentioned, steroids aren’t the only reason fans hate Barry, but they certainly hurt his cause. What makes fans even more averse to Barry is his insistent denial of any wrongdoing. Just look at his physique now compared to when he came up with the Pirates—he’s gotten huge. Some of that can be attributed to weight training, but by no means all of it. If there’s anything to learn from Pete Rose, it’s that America hates a liar.

Hopefully you’re reading this Barry. Maybe now you’ll know why.