Bonds Final Home Game

[Gothamite]

For those reasons, I don't think he will. He's moving to the AL.

I think he'd like to play in Los Angeles, but I can't see Mike Scioscia standing for that. He believes in team players.

I really think he'll land in Oakland. Not that many other options out there.

[gatineaujay]

For those reasons, I don't think he will. He's moving to the AL.

I think he'd like to play in Los Angeles, but I can't see Mike Scioscia standing for that. He believes in team players.

I really think he'll land in Oakland. Not that many other options out there.

that would be nice for the "fans" in SF, not too far away to follow him and the bandwaggon.

[powersurge]

They used him the last couple of years to sell tickets and no matter what you think personally about him, he built that stadium, made the Giants a respectable team and made baseball popular again in SF. He deserves more that painted grass. That is a pathetic tribute to the greatest homerun hitter in the history of baseball (by the way I do not like the man, but I speak the truth).

Well, what more do YOU think they should do?

[Milo Meningocele]

I beliave if im not mistaken that the Rangers did the same kind of thing for Grezkey when he retired by putting the number 99 at both ends of the ice behind the goals

They did the same with 19 the night Steve Yzerman's number was retired.

...sorry to veer off topic.

[Old School Fool]

They used him the last couple of years to sell tickets and no matter what you think personally about him, he built that stadium, made the Giants a respectable team and made baseball popular again in SF. He deserves more that painted grass. That is a pathetic tribute to the greatest homerun hitter in the history of baseball (by the way I do not like the man, but I speak the truth).

I agree!

I'm a Giants fan and Brewers fan, btw. Also, if Barry goes to the Dodgers, I will bust some caps...

[Gothamite]

Okay, so powersurge's question stands: what more do YOU think they should do?

[BallWonk]

Okay, so powersurge's question stands: what more do YOU think they should do?

Whatever the Giants do should be in direct proportion to the number of championships Barry led the team to winning and the amount of respect the franchise earned among baseball fans around the country. Which is to say, the amount of further recognition the Giants give Barry would equal the amount or tribute they've already paid, times zero.

I know some casual fans who used to hate the Yankees just because for a long time that's been what decent people who don't live in New York were supposed to do. But especially since 2004, casual Yankees hatred has subsided, replaced mainly by disgust at Bonds and the Giants. It's gonna take that franchise a long time to live down the negative associations the Bonds era has given the team, and in the meantime Giants don't even have a World Series trophy to show for it. It's like, if you're going to sell your soul to the devil, at least don't sell it cheap. One NL pennant is not worth ten years of Barry Bonds. He's gonna go into the Hall of Fame with an SF on his cap, and that stain is going to linger in the minds of fans for a long time.

I appreciate that the Giants have lately rebuilt their popularity locally, and that's great for the team, but they could have done that without linking the team's fate to Barry Bonds' integrity. When you think about the kinds of things well-run teams do with the kind of money SF spent on Bonds, the Giants ought to have won a couple of championships over the last decade. They could have been the great team of the 2000s, and instead they were Barry Bonds' home club. Even Giants fans ought to regret that choice.

[rams80]

Okay, so powersurge's question stands: what more do YOU think they should do?

Whatever the Giants do should be in direct proportion to the number of championships Barry led the team to winning and the amount of respect the franchise earned among baseball fans around the country. Which is to say, the amount of further recognition the Giants give Barry would equal the amount or tribute they've already paid, times zero.

By your argument, Ernie Banks and Ron Santo also didn't deserve any future recognition.

I know some casual fans who used to hate the Yankees just because for a long time that's been what decent people who don't live in New York were supposed to do. But especially since 2004, casual Yankees hatred has subsided, replaced mainly by disgust at Bonds and the Giants.

Actually, I thought it was replaced by disgust, loathing, and hatred of the Red Sox and their large bandwagoning fanbase. I haven't felt any loathing towards the Giants, not have any of my friends who are baseball fans.

It's gonna take that franchise a long time to live down the negative associations the Bonds era has given the team, and in the meantime Giants don't even have a World Series trophy to show for it. It's like, if you're going to sell your soul to the devil, at least don't sell it cheap. One NL pennant is not worth ten years of Barry Bonds. He's gonna go into the Hall of Fame with an SF on his cap, and that stain is going to linger in the minds of fans for a long time.

I appreciate that the Giants have lately rebuilt their popularity locally, and that's great for the team, but they could have done that without linking the team's fate to Barry Bonds' integrity. When you think about the kinds of things well-run teams do with the kind of money SF spent on Bonds, the Giants ought to have won a couple of championships over the last decade. They could have been the great team of the 2000s, and instead they were Barry Bonds' home club. Even Giants fans ought to regret that choice.

The fans may regret it, but I doubt the actual franchise will. They raked in the bucks over this, and think of the tv time they got that they would not have normally recieved the last couple of years. As for the stain of Bonds' memory, the collective ADD of the American Consciousness will not make it a permanent problem.

As for what I would do...retire his number and name part of the stadium, preferably by McCovey Cove, after him.

[Gothamite]

True, but that television exposure (and the ticket revenue) came at a pretty high cost.

Instead of putting money into a competitive team, they put it into his pockets. Had they won a Series, that would do more for sustaining a fan base (including all revenues) for years.

Short term thinking.

[rams80]

True, but that television exposure (and the ticket revenue) came at a pretty high cost.

Instead of putting money into a competitive team, they put it into his pockets. Had they won a Series, that would do more for sustaining a fan base (including all revenues) for years.

Short term thinking.

And that makes them different from 95% of all Americans how?

[Gothamite]

You're presuming I won't criticize or can't find fault with 95% of Americans....

[powersurge]

True, but that television exposure (and the ticket revenue) came at a pretty high cost.

Instead of putting money into a competitive team, they put it into his pockets. Had they won a Series, that would do more for sustaining a fan base (including all revenues) for years.

Short term thinking.

And that makes them different from 95% of all Americans how?

The question still stands:

What more would YOU have done?

We can be critical of eachother's opinions about the guy and about the team, but I really want to know what people would do. Its like saying: "We need to get the hell out of Iraq!" Okay, well HOW would you do it? Its much more compicated than just saying it. I know this is a very extreme case bordering on Apples to Oranges, but it was on my mind because of a recent discussion I had with someone.

Too many people have plenty of opinions but not many concrete ideas on how to solve something or make it better.

[Gothamite]

Well, Rams80 is about the only person to actually answer your question.

As for what I would do...retire his number and name part of the stadium, preferably by McCovey Cove, after him.

gmat and Old School Fool have yet to chime in, and they were the ones who felt the existing tribute is insufficient.

There's a further complication in the retirement tributes: Barry's not done. Should they heap honors on someone who will be back in Pac Bell Park next year, wearing gray?

[rams80]

Well, Rams80 is about the only person to actually answer your question.

As for what I would do...retire his number and name part of the stadium, preferably by McCovey Cove, after him.

gmat and Old School Fool have yet to chime in, and they were the ones who felt the existing tribute is insufficient.

There's a further complication in the retirement tributes: Barry's not done. Should they heap honors on someone who will be back in Pac Bell Park next year, wearing gray?

Well, they couldn't really retire the number during his last home game either. I should have added that yes, these are post retirement tributes.

[powersurge]

As far as retirement celebrations/honors...Don't hold your collective breaths waiting for a statue. I think they'll retire his number, but not much more than that. We also need to realize that even though this whole Steroid investigation is pretty weak, it may still further implicate players (Barry included) who used performance enhancing drugs. There is also the Federal Investigation which may further tarnish Mr. Bonds' reputation.

So it will be interesting to see how this plays out. I mean look at McGwire. Shortly after he retired he was a homerun king who was revered by baseball fans as one of the two saviors of the game. One bad day on Capitol Hill and he's practically buried in shame and erased from baseball fans' memories.

Sad state of affairs when it comes to baseball home run kings.

[BallWonk]

Okay, so powersurge's question stands: what more do YOU think they should do?

Whatever the Giants do should be in direct proportion to the number of championships Barry led the team to winning and the amount of respect the franchise earned among baseball fans around the country. Which is to say, the amount of further recognition the Giants give Barry would equal the amount or tribute they've already paid, times zero.

By your argument, Ernie Banks and Ron Santo also didn't deserve any future recognition.

On the contrary: People who weren't Cubs fans loved Banks and Santo. People who weren't Cubs fans became Cubs fans because of beloved players like Banks and Santo. My Iowa-born, Cardinals-raised father, for one. You'll note I counted World Series trophies and respect earned for the franchise.

There may be a lot of Barry Bonds fans around the country now who weren't Bonds fans before he went to the Giants or before he juiced up (and you complain about Red Sox fans being cheap bandwagoneers!). But I just don't see evidence that Bonds has created a positive perception of the Giants team like guys like Banks and Santo did for their club. When Bonds signs with the Phillies or the White Sox or whatever, the Bonds fans out there will get new caps and "support" that team instead.

[Old School Fool]

Retire the number. I don't care about the whole steroids thing, just retire the damn number and move on with the organization. He did a lot over here, and we love him regardless of the accusations and such.

I loved Barry before steroids accusations were even thrown in his direction. I didn't become a Giants fan until 2002 or so, because I figured since I live in the Bay Area, I might as well become a fan because I'm probably gonna live here for the rest of my life. Brewers were originally my favorite MLB team (and still are!), because of my Uncle is a fan and my Grandpa's family lives down in Wisconsin.

I will never forget that HR he hit in the 2002 WS in Anaheim Stadium. That was just sick.

P.S., I hate the Green Bay Packers. Damn this family and their Packer fandom!

[ShinyHubCaps]

P.S., I hate the Green Bay Packers. Damn this family and their Packer fandom!

Not only is that irrelevant, but how can you hate a team that embodies everything that is good and pure about athletic competition?

As for the tribute, I think it looks cheap, like a video game overlay (of course, this would be ironic because Barry was not in any of the video games because he was not part of the MLBPA). I also feel badly for the opposing team's RF for having to stand in that dirty dirty spot with distracting nameplates of not-yet-retired players. I would have also liked to see it spelled Barry* Bonds* 25*, as well as having asterisks after every word, number, logo, or decal in the stadium that night.

[powersurge]

P.S., I hate the Green Bay Packers. Damn this family and their Packer fandom!

Not only is that irrelevant, but how can you hate a team that embodies everything that is good and pure about athletic competition?

As for the tribute, I think it looks cheap, like a video game overlay (of course, this would be ironic because Barry was not in any of the video games because he was not part of the MLBPA). I also feel badly for the opposing team's RF for having to stand in that dirty dirty spot with distracting nameplates of not-yet-retired players. I would have also liked to see it spelled Barry* Bonds* 25*, as well as having asterisks after every word, number, logo, or decal in the stadium that night.

YEAH! How dare you speak of the Chicago Bears in that manner!

[63Bulldogs63]

DO people need to be reminded that bonds had an awesome '02 world series? And that the only reason why they lost is was because of the horrible managing capabilities of one Dusty Baker. BOnds couldnt go out there and pitch the final 2 innings of that game 6, so in effect he did his job and dusty didnt do his. regardless, i do think the giants need to retire the number regardless of championships. For 15 BOnds made the players around him better. It's a proven statistical fact that when bonds is in the game, the players around him hit better, regardless if they are walking him or not. If bonds didnt come over from pittsburgh i don't see the giants in SF andymore, they would be in St. Petersburg or where ever the heck the rays play....