Barry bonds is what happens when you get one of the best technical athletes to swing a bat being given some juice to use his skills and experience to go farther.
Statistically speaking, Barry Bonds is the #1 position player of all time in terms of being the most quintessential and record-setting 5-tool player (i.e., fielding, throwing, stealing, average, power) that the MLB has ever seen. Way back at the end of the 1993 season, Barry had already won 3 MVPs (’90, ’92, ’93), tied for the most in MLB history (making him a clear hall of famer already), only to be broken by himself by garnering a staggering 7 MVPs by the end of his career. Importantly, the very earliest time at which Barry may have been implicated in steroid use was not until after the 1998 season. By 1998, while he was still clearly a natty putting up natty numbers (albeit the best of all nattys), he also became the only player in MLB history with 400+ home runs and 400+ stolen bases, which still holds true to this day. Let that sink in. Furthermore, despite always being a potent power hitter, Bonds always hit for average and struck out far less than most of his power-hitting counterparts. He hit over .300 11 times and-aside from his rookie year-never struck out more than 100 times in a year (averaging only 83 strikeouts a year). Moreover, by this time in 1998, he had also won 8 gold gloves, the most by any left fielder in MLB history to this day. Finally, as far as that exclusive 400/400 club that I first mentioned, for which he is still the only member in MLB history? Well, he ended his career with 500+ home runs (763, all-time record) and 500+ stolen bases (514), a feat that leaves all other players in history 100+ further behind and for which he would have easily completed even if he remained as a natty until the end. Even though I grew up in Chicago and now live in Boston, Barry Bonds was my favorite player back as a kid and will remain my favorite player of all time by far. Although the Red Sox are now my home team ever since becoming a Bostonian 8+ years ago when I moved here for a position as a Harvard Postdoctoral Neuroscientist. On that note, I plan to launch my channel later this year and although most content will focus on neuroscience and biology, I will also focus on data-driven and science-based videos on some of my passions such as baseball. So feel free to sub in advance. Cheers.
@Michael Adams What century are you living on buddy? You do realize that batting average is definitively the least important offensive stat and does not predict wins or success of baseball teams at all. WAR and OPS are the statistical drivers that determine what really matters to win games. That's why the advent of statistical departments on all MLB teams has devalued any players striving for batting average. That said, Bonds hit over .300 11 times including when the batting title for highest avg twice at .362 and .370!!! Also had years hitting .341, .336, and .328. The OPs post was taking all the five tool factors into consideration anyway. Anyway, welcome to 2023 and the new and improved strategies of baseball that have been going on for over 10 years to justifiably devalue batting average.
It’s kinda sad he wasn’t even a 300 career hitter with all the steroids he hit. He was a great overall player but overrated as a hitter, not to say he wasn’t a great hitter but he wasn’t nearly the greatest hitter ever.
Ruth will always be the best player in every measure, particularly because he had 96 pitching victories - including an ERA title - to go with his offensive numbers. Ruth makes it impossible to compare eras because no one dominated theirs like him. He was like Pele and Gretzky rolled into one.
My dad, a lifelong dodgers fan, has always said that Barry bonds was the greatest he ever saw if you don’t include cheating with steroids. He always told me that he was a perfect player and didn’t need the roids to be who he became
@Noire Kuroraigami and it produced unreal numbers. Fake news bro. The worst thing the marginal players on roids got paid big ( for the day) and took the spots of guys who didn't cheat. That's robbing and laughing all the way to the bank. The cheaters never deserve the dignity of the hallowed Hall of Fame.
People forget that Bonds was on track to be an all-timer before steroids were even on the table. He accumulated nearly 100 WAR before 1998, his first dubious season, which would put him in the top 40 all-time. His 11 year stat cutout from 1987-1998 is eerily similar to Mike Trout's 2011-2022, and Mike is already a top 20 all-time ballplayer, and will probably end in the top 10. Bonds was the best player of his generation before steroids were even a consideration, and it's crazy that people forget that. It doesn't excuse his PED usage, but it definitely puts to rest the idea that Bonds took a magic pill to become good at baseball.
@Davis Junior was the poster boy for baseball in the 90s now he was the 5 tool he hit for power, average around .300 had the glove, speed and something Barry never had a great arm. Junior could throw a guy out at home from deep center field.
Griffey JR was voted best player of the 1990s but it was close basically OBP was bonds argument think Jr better 1990-1999 but Bonds blew past him post steroids
I didn't hate Bonds with the Pirates and I didn't hate Bonds with the Giants. What I and most people did was admire his baseball prowess day in and day out. He's the G.O.A.T. Get over it and don't tell me he was juiced when Eric Gagne and Clemens and the rest were admittedly juiced. I don't remember Bonds ever admitting he took steroids and the reason he didn't make the HOF was because of hater baseball writers who didn't like the way he handled the press. I feel blessed I got to watch that man play at all as should all baseball fans of this era...
The way I see it is that after the 94 strike, MLB was desperate for ratings and loved all the attention all the roided up players brought to the game like the 98 home run race between McGuire and Sosa. People fighting each other with their kayak paddles out in McCovey Cove in SF to fish up a Barry Bonds home run ball was peak sports fan entertainment. MLB was happy to look the other way while McGuire, Bonds, Palmiero, Canseco, Clemens, and plenty of others made them lots of money. To then posthumously clutch their pearls over steroids that they acted so dumb and shocked about is just hypocrisy. Want to enforce the rules and crack down on PEDs? Okay fine. But don’t turn around and punish the guys who used during a time of such permissiveness that YOU allowed that became known as the “steroid era.” Those guys should be allowed in Cooperstown not because cheating is okay if you can get away from it, but rather because the league shouldn’t be punishing guys for cheating that the league allowed and capitalized on.
I don’t care what anyone says. I’m a Braves fan in my 30s. I saw Bonds pre PEDS. Yes, he made a mistake due to his ego, a massive mistake and maybe an even bigger mistake by lying about it (ironically Raphael Palmeiro scolded and pointed at members of Congress for correctly accusing him of PED use. Bonds would’ve been a 1st ballot HOFer without ever even drinking a protein shake let alone taking PEDs. He was the equivalent of Bryce Harper during Harper’s MVP seasons except unlike Harper he provided 30-35 stolen bases and wasn’t a liability in the OF instead won 7 Gold Gloves. Think about how much THAT, pre PEDs, Bonds would’ve been worth.
By just stats yes, but PED’s are illegal but I still think he’s good. He had good defense and a good eye so he had some skill. But no where near the best player mainly cause PED’s.
@BaseballMVP26everyone else did them? You don’t know what you are talking about. I bet you can’t list enough players that were on roids at the time to account for even just 1% of the total active players from that time.
Um no Bonds roid years is what put him into a different stratosphere in those years he would have been declining instead he put up his best seasons ever 2000-04 Griffey was slightly better 1990-99 and Bonds was one of the worst choke artists in playoff history pre 02 Super steroids
Bonds got HUGE. I remember walking by Benihana’s in Japantown, SF. Just walking by and I saw a huge head sitting at a table. Who’s goddamn head is that!?? I double back and it’s Bonds for sure.
@BMac I mean, thats just how fans are. If you are on their team, they will mostly cheer you on no matter what. Just look at Springer and the Jays. Altough a confirmed Astro cheater, Springer doesnt seem to have a beef with Toronto fans
I always thought why does everyone hate bonds. Then around 2004-06 sometime I don’t remember exactly I had an interaction with him. After that interaction I then knew why everyone hated him. Bonds did not need the media to make him look like a jerk he did a fine job himself
As someone who's known him since he was 4 years old, he was always a good dude to my family and I. He had a hard childhood that nobody really brings up and he was raised to hate the media because the media was really racist towards his family and treated them bad as well. People that know him know that he was scapegoated. He's still the best, if not his godfather, to ever do it.
Baseball is a team sport. Barry, for all of his crazy skills, appeared to have played mostly for himself. I think that's likely why most of the other players hated him. Not a HOF fan, so to me it's irrelevant. One of the greatest for sure, but not a likeable character. I bet if he got SF or Pitt, PA some WS rings, they would've forgiven him.
The fans didn't hate him that much. The media despised him because of their negative interactions with him. They would never have forgiven him, and to this day they still haven't. He won't get into the Hall til those media guys are dead is my best guess. That's how much the media hated him.
I met barry in seattle in 1996 5 hrs before the game outside the kingdom. he was nothing but nice to me. he didn't sign anything and wouldnt take pictures but he spent 20 minutes letting calming me down in the middle of a panic attack because i got to meet my hero. i do wish more people got to see that barry.
I agree many times in the Clark bar adjacent to three rivers stadium, here in Pittsburgh, he bought a round of drinks for everyone. I have also interacted with him on a personal level and found him to be okay with me.
Sports writers do the voting. Bonds relationship sucked with reporters, writers and everyone else it seemed. He is as much to blame as well as the reporters and writers that dislike him.
If steroids were the hurdle how did Selig make it in? The guy who was the biggest winner of the steroid era and the guy most culpable in the flourishing of the steroid era. I'm agreeing with you just adding on to your point about the Hall being a joke
Bonds and Roger Clemens were almost the same. Both had their careers launch, peak, and coincide at exactly the same time, both were generational talents, both were massive cancers for their respective teams, both already had HOF-lock careers prior to taking steroids, and both got a lot of shit for lying over steroids. Oh, but one main difference: Clemens got caught grooming an up and coming country singer named Mindy McCready and somehow got away with it, and it pretty much ruined her life and led to her tragic death as well. He also had a final "farewell" in Boston in 2003 when he supposedly retired but it became awkward when he came back the following year. A few years later, he fucked over Boston in 2007, going to New York when he said he wanted to play for his favorite team for his last season despite teasing the Red Sox so much over potentially returning. There really could be an entirely separate video made on why everybody hated Roger Clemens, there's much more lore aside than what I listed above. Speaking of pitchers, Jonathan Papelbon (or Papeldouche depending on how much you hate him) might be a possibility too, his whole career is fascinating on and off the field due to his eccentricity and how much controversy he attracted regularly, especially later in his career with Philly and Washington.
@Lakest Indeed though you should have clarify this earlier since you made it sounded like it was the only reason. There are tons of things going on that made it difficult for her to recover.
@iamhungey12345 I never directly said it was the main reason, it just kicked off her life's trajectory. I however definitely think the suicide was in part due to Clemens' grooming, the news coverage in 2008 and subsequent fallout, but I'd say that the suicide of her partner David Wilson is definitely the main reason. We're deviating a bit, but what a tragic life.
@Lakest Basically you were assuming. It certainly didn't help but you can't really chalk it up as the main reason as there's also the fact that her career had a struggle and was never able to get back to her early fame since the late 1990s and had suffered from domestic abuse in her relationship with McKnight and even returned to the guy at one point. There were a lot of things going on that led up to her suicide.
I'd say he shouldn't have gotten crap for the minor stuff but he for sure deserved to get shit for the more serious things. Plus teammates hate him as well, not just media. That being said he's still a top 3 player ever.
Barry was the face of steroids only because he was the greatest player ever to take steroids. Who could you say had a better eye at the plate than Barry? Ted Williams is the only answer. Bonds was probably a headache to deal with in the clubhouse and certainly had a war with the media, but he is a top 10 player of all-time. He is now like Pete Rose, remembered for all the wrong things. One things is certain though, he will always be a massive part of MLB lore and history.
But yeah, I think the National League should keep the old school vibe with no DH and the pitcher having to bat. Then the American League can let them roid it up and even have multiple DHs in the lineup just to have more sluggers. Also allow runners to break up double plays at 2nd and collide with the catcher at the plate! Total bush league lol
I kind of agree with that. I mean they didn’t test for drugs back in the early days and especially in the golden age of baseball, everyone knows most players were all in feta means, but nothings ever said about that and they don’t have any kind of Asterix beside their records.
I mean why the hell were baseball players testifying at a grand jury. Who exactly was hurt by this. Am pretty sure mlb didn't refund their money from it
Galaxy brain meme: Barry Bonds the greatest HR hitter of all time = small brain Barry Bonds is the most toxic player of all time = slightly enlightened brain Barry Bonds is the best player ever to draw walks = Galaxy Brain
My dad and older brother won tickets to the 1996 All-Star game in Philly. This guy, at age 12, got to eat at the dinner banquet with some of the players the night before the game, and sat next to Barry Bonds. The asshole never said a word to my brother the entire night, despite sitting next to him.
@rara mcgee So, should we put an asterisk on teams that won championships with players who were known to have been using steroids? Because that can be said for almost every team that won it in the late 90s to 2005 .
Insane stat- Bonds has more intentional walks than a combined EVERY player whoever played for the Tampa Bay Rays EVER. That’s EVERYONE from the Rays combine from 1998- present. Insane.
Holy cow i didn't know this stat. I know the stat if you took his hr total and made it into outs then he would have a better ops/slugging than David ortiz.
100% collusion - I am no fan of the Giants, Bonds was definitely given a bad rap. I was praying the A's would pick him up. They probably would have made it to the World Series with him on the roster.
As a person, Bonds is a good person. I met Bonds at Dodger stadium. At times can be over the top but what athlete pro athlete is not. However, as a sportsman, yes he does suck, as a sportsman!
@Kirk Cavanaugh podemos continuar totalmente esse debate sobre protocolo de internet e conversa fiada, se você quiser. Podemos começar com o português e passar para o espanhol, se preferir.
@Kirk Cavanaugh but we can totally continue this debate about internet protocol and the abc's of trash talking if you'd like. I'd be happy to explain the difference in multiple ways or languages.
@Fort Nag Wow. as soon as someone asks you to explain something THAT YOU SAID ABOUT MY POST IN THE FIRST PLACE...you get all defensive and act like you are somebody? Kindly get over yourself. Trust me, it will not take long. Bye.
I feel like they, they being everyone that spoke bad on him just didn’t like Barry Bonds cause he was him and him being an asshole didn’t make it any better
No one in the bay area from the fans. Hate it Barry Bonds. The news media hated him. Which made fans of other cities hate him. The media narrative of steroids made people hate him
His daughter ran track at a school in the same district as mine growing up. Barry would always be there supporting her, and he was always kind to anyone who went up to him to talk. I don’t have single bad thing to say about the man. A very misunderstood character.
@star that’s a little more than “being surly with people” which is what I was responding to in the comment from David. Obviously he did some awful stuff back in the day, some incidents like the one you mention are even substantiated. I’m just saying he was a noticeably changed man in retirement. Maybe it was the drugs, maybe it was the pressure, or the money, or maybe the fact that nobody cared who he was even though he was one of the best. Maybe all of it. I can’t justify what he was or what he did, but I believe he changed.
@David Tsang Honestly, I don’t care if you think I’m lying. I don’t need validation from people on the internet. I’m sharing a memory of mine that is relevant to the video. I didn’t even expect people to read it.
@Tom Foolery How do we know if your story is real? You could be just another guy railing for him to be in the HOF... See how that works? We could all be talking out of our collective arses...
They hated Barry bonds because they were jealous of the fact that he was the most gifted played in baseball to come around since his GodFather Mays... the world always gonna be jealous of true talent, period. And because of that fact when he got caught with steroids it just gave people even more fuel to hate him. Fuck the world... he was one of the 5 best players to ever play before steroids... no-one had the capacity to hit over .320, have a .430+ OBP with 40/40 potential (home run/SB) while always being a gold glover fielder. Best all-around talent in the game along with Rodriguez and he was posting seasons like this regularly before his 2001-2004 crazy stint. People just don't understand what true baseball talent is and how Bonds was pretty much the epitome of it. What a fcking tragedy.
In the 90’s, I watched Braves baseball everyday, and didn’t understand the hatred for Bonds or care about his personal attitude at all. Non of the stuff that you mentioned in first 14 minutes was known to me. But, as a Braves fan, he just seemed like a villainous and threatening character, that always seemed to fail to preform against the Braves future HoF pitchers. My personal dislike for him is more a general dislike of steroid era ending the small ball games of the 90’s national league. Baseball isn’t about men hitting homers; that’s just not why people watch. Baseball is a team sport with strategy and chance and emotion and flawed calls and flawed individuals. Baseball is a gentleman’s sport that plays out over a season like a soap opera. The sport would be more successful if promoted as it is, and not transformed into something else.
@TheMagnificentTube I haven't watched baseball since 09. Steroid era ruined the game imo. Nowadays you have clowns pimping hrs like they're first to do it. Just too much
@TheMagnificentTube So many teams lack a reliable bullpen. Early 2000 Oakland A's come to mind. Tim Hudson, Mark Mulder and Barry Zito were great, but had a shaky bullpen.
@TheMagnificentTube It's just complicated to put a perfect bullpen together. In 96, Wohlers just imploded. They had competent bullpens, they just never found a closer til Rocker and he had his own issues. Those late 90's Yankees teams were as perfect as bullpens get. The transitions from middle to setup to closer were flawless at times. Of course, they had Stanton, a former Brave. When they finally lost, Rivera was always on the mound when they blew lead. Great, but not perfect.
@Chazz X just, since you seem to know baseball, you ever wonder why their pitching staff was so great, but then their closers always had issues? I think playing golf together everyday lead to that command style of pitching that really Greg Maddox is known for.
@TheMagnificentTube Braves owned the NL, despite lacking world series trophies. They lost to some pretty good teams unfortunately. Some bullpen issues as well cost them in big games.
@Jerry Davis indeed. His greatness is undeniable. I mean its like he was made purposely to play this game and what with the greatness surrounding him and coaching/helping him (godfather willie mays, his pops bobby, his uncle reggie jackson, his best friend tony gywnn) i mean come on. If anyone was going to do the things he did it was going to be him🤷
Idk if I believe him or not but it’s never been proven. Even as a Dodgers fan he was my 2nd favorite player growing up bc he didn’t give a rat’s ass about what the media had to say, besides his longevity of greatness
@Keith Hulst Great argument. I'll say Barry's the greatest hitter of all time, regardless of juice! Best eye and bat discipline ever. What would Mickey Mantle have been like if he wasn't drunk for his entire career? I will say, though, Rickey Henderson should be in the conversation as the greatest baseball player of all time!
It's really difficult to give him that title when we know he cheated the second half of his career. Especially when you consider players like Willie Mays and Ken Griffey Jr. that did it the right way. Also, what would Ted Williams numbers be like if he had not served his country for as many years as he did? Babe Ruth was a solid pitcher for the first few years of his career, what would his numbers be like if he had been full time position player his entire career? Sorry, I can not and will not accept Barry Bonds as the greatest of all time. However; I do believe he belongs in the hall of fame...but maybe wait until after he as assumed room temperature. I mean why should he get in while he's still alive when players like Ron Santo didn't get that opportunity (many of the MLB HOF voters suck)?
Let’s go I caught a minor mistake. At 8:05 he says baseball slam dunk contest but that event was a dunk contest with any famous athlete that didn’t play basketball hosted by foot locker.
Thanks for telling us the story of Bonds before steroids, it’s not a story often told even though he had a HOF-worthy career before the roids. And a HOF-temper too.
I mean he cheated. Of course everyone is going to treat the guy poorly. However I think MLB should allow steroids but also make every field 10 feet larger.
Bond is the goat. You can't teach hand eye Coordination. Steroids saved baseball. But yet after baseball got everything they wanted out of these great players they black ball them? 98 with McGuire and Sosa that was the greatest season ever in baseball. Chasing the record. But yet both yet both those men aren't even consider HOFers? Then let's talk about Ruth who only played with whites. Or in the 70s and 80s when everyone was doing speed. BONDS is the goat.
Correct he is the greatest. Ruth and Cobb didn’t face global talent, they didn’t face specialty relief pitching, and ground rule doubles were counted as home runs until 1930.
Ken Griffey Jr was my favorite player as a kid. I was aware of Bonds, but I never gave him a second thought until the end of his career when he was obviously juicing. While this video gives a lot of context to the hate Bonds received, to me it seems like he earned every bit of it.
Yeah KGJ was an amazing, HOF caliber player, but one of the reasons he was a superstar was he was seen as a nice guy and marketable, which he absolutely was. If Barry had been half way decent, he would have been Bo Jackson level famous in the 90s
Easily influenced headline reading sheep hate Barry Bonds. He wasn't nice to reporters, might have been a real jerk. There has not been a better player in his generation. 85% of them juiced. He was a star before and after. PED's don't give you patience at the plate, and he'd see 1-2 pitches to hit in a series from 2000-2003
Astros 2017 are worse than Barry Bonds in terms of effect of cheating. No one in the history of baseball cheated like the 2017 Astros. The statistics tell the story. Yu Darvish has the highest career K rate among righthanded pitchers in MLB history (!), and against the Astros in June (before the cheating system was implemented), he held them to one hit in 7 innings. But in the World Series, with the cheating, the Astros only had ONE swing and miss at an offspeed pitch. If you understand baseball, you know that's statistically highly improbable. Yes, it really wasn't possible against a team that stole signs throughout the postseason, resulting in statistical anomalies that the baseball world has never seen. A team where (with the sole exception of 40 year old Beltran) every single player improved OPS from 2016 to 2017, and the players with the worst career stats saw the most improvement (Jake Marisnick and Marwyn Gonzalez improved by over +200). I do respect Jose Altuve- I think he is very talented and according to Correa, Altuve was disgusted by the cheating, and got angry when teammates tried to feed him signs. But the fact of the matter is that he had the best year of his career in 2017. It's a massive advantage. Imagine not having to read scouting reports or watch films late at night, trying to figure out pitcher tendencies. In fact, you don't even need to scout opposing pitchers - a huge advantage over teams that were trying to compete honestly. No wonder they were cheating all season, even against teams that lost 100 games, like the White Sox and the Mariners. At that point, it's not even baseball any more. It's some other game.
Barry bonds is what happens when you get one of the best technical athletes to swing a bat being given some juice to use his skills and experience to go farther.
Statistically speaking, Barry Bonds is the #1 position player of all time in terms of being the most quintessential and record-setting 5-tool player (i.e., fielding, throwing, stealing, average, power) that the MLB has ever seen. Way back at the end of the 1993 season, Barry had already won 3 MVPs (’90, ’92, ’93), tied for the most in MLB history (making him a clear hall of famer already), only to be broken by himself by garnering a staggering 7 MVPs by the end of his career. Importantly, the very earliest time at which Barry may have been implicated in steroid use was not until after the 1998 season. By 1998, while he was still clearly a natty putting up natty numbers (albeit the best of all nattys), he also became the only player in MLB history with 400+ home runs and 400+ stolen bases, which still holds true to this day. Let that sink in. Furthermore, despite always being a potent power hitter, Bonds always hit for average and struck out far less than most of his power-hitting counterparts. He hit over .300 11 times and-aside from his rookie year-never struck out more than 100 times in a year (averaging only 83 strikeouts a year). Moreover, by this time in 1998, he had also won 8 gold gloves, the most by any left fielder in MLB history to this day. Finally, as far as that exclusive 400/400 club that I first mentioned, for which he is still the only member in MLB history? Well, he ended his career with 500+ home runs (763, all-time record) and 500+ stolen bases (514), a feat that leaves all other players in history 100+ further behind and for which he would have easily completed even if he remained as a natty until the end. Even though I grew up in Chicago and now live in Boston, Barry Bonds was my favorite player back as a kid and will remain my favorite player of all time by far. Although the Red Sox are now my home team ever since becoming a Bostonian 8+ years ago when I moved here for a position as a Harvard Postdoctoral Neuroscientist. On that note, I plan to launch my channel later this year and although most content will focus on neuroscience and biology, I will also focus on data-driven and science-based videos on some of my passions such as baseball. So feel free to sub in advance. Cheers.
@Nathan Dodge But this is the #1 comment out of thousands of comments haha. So yeah more people read this than any other comment.
@Michael Adams What century are you living on buddy? You do realize that batting average is definitively the least important offensive stat and does not predict wins or success of baseball teams at all. WAR and OPS are the statistical drivers that determine what really matters to win games. That's why the advent of statistical departments on all MLB teams has devalued any players striving for batting average. That said, Bonds hit over .300 11 times including when the batting title for highest avg twice at .362 and .370!!! Also had years hitting .341, .336, and .328. The OPs post was taking all the five tool factors into consideration anyway. Anyway, welcome to 2023 and the new and improved strategies of baseball that have been going on for over 10 years to justifiably devalue batting average.
He's a HABITUAL cheater. And nobody is going to read all that.
It’s kinda sad he wasn’t even a 300 career hitter with all the steroids he hit. He was a great overall player but overrated as a hitter, not to say he wasn’t a great hitter but he wasn’t nearly the greatest hitter ever.
Ruth will always be the best player in every measure, particularly because he had 96 pitching victories - including an ERA title - to go with his offensive numbers.
Ruth makes it impossible to compare eras because no one dominated theirs like him. He was like Pele and Gretzky rolled into one.
My dad, a lifelong dodgers fan, has always said that Barry bonds was the greatest he ever saw if you don’t include cheating with steroids. He always told me that he was a perfect player and didn’t need the roids to be who he became
@Noire Kuroraigami like Lance Armstrong in bicycling. He got stripped and shamed because all the Tour d France medals relinquished.
@Noire Kuroraigami and it produced unreal numbers. Fake news bro. The worst thing the marginal players on roids got paid big ( for the day) and took the spots of guys who didn't cheat. That's robbing and laughing all the way to the bank. The cheaters never deserve the dignity of the hallowed Hall of Fame.
It was just the era bro, everyone was on steroids from every sport
Bro was straight up villain 💀
People forget that Bonds was on track to be an all-timer before steroids were even on the table. He accumulated nearly 100 WAR before 1998, his first dubious season, which would put him in the top 40 all-time. His 11 year stat cutout from 1987-1998 is eerily similar to Mike Trout's 2011-2022, and Mike is already a top 20 all-time ballplayer, and will probably end in the top 10. Bonds was the best player of his generation before steroids were even a consideration, and it's crazy that people forget that. It doesn't excuse his PED usage, but it definitely puts to rest the idea that Bonds took a magic pill to become good at baseball.
@Davis Junior was the poster boy for baseball in the 90s now he was the 5 tool he hit for power, average around .300 had the glove, speed and something Barry never had a great arm. Junior could throw a guy out at home from deep center field.
And he was a complete choke artist in the playoffs pre 2002 super steroid Bonds
Griffey JR was voted best player of the 1990s but it was close basically OBP was bonds argument think Jr better 1990-1999 but Bonds blew past him post steroids
I don’t care if he was an asshole that dude made baseball fun to watch
Everyone is just mad that he has the hardest name in Baseball History
I didn't hate Bonds with the Pirates and I didn't hate Bonds with the Giants. What I and most people did was admire his baseball prowess day in and day out. He's the G.O.A.T. Get over it and don't tell me he was juiced when Eric Gagne and Clemens and the rest were admittedly juiced. I don't remember Bonds ever admitting he took steroids and the reason he didn't make the HOF was because of hater baseball writers who didn't like the way he handled the press. I feel blessed I got to watch that man play at all as should all baseball fans of this era...
I dont hate barry Bonds! He is and was the best ball players of all time! In my book you are a hall of Famer no matter what they say!
Bonds the Goat...and he's awesome
The way I see it is that after the 94 strike, MLB was desperate for ratings and loved all the attention all the roided up players brought to the game like the 98 home run race between McGuire and Sosa. People fighting each other with their kayak paddles out in McCovey Cove in SF to fish up a Barry Bonds home run ball was peak sports fan entertainment. MLB was happy to look the other way while McGuire, Bonds, Palmiero, Canseco, Clemens, and plenty of others made them lots of money. To then posthumously clutch their pearls over steroids that they acted so dumb and shocked about is just hypocrisy. Want to enforce the rules and crack down on PEDs? Okay fine. But don’t turn around and punish the guys who used during a time of such permissiveness that YOU allowed that became known as the “steroid era.”
Those guys should be allowed in Cooperstown not because cheating is okay if you can get away from it, but rather because the league shouldn’t be punishing guys for cheating that the league allowed and capitalized on.
They just hated Barry because they couldn't pull off an earring like him
I never hated Barry... steroids don't give you a good swing!! And steroids been in the game since Mickey Mantle...
His chain bothered him when he was batting so he put that pendant on an earring like a g
Made him look like a little girl
My man got intentionally walked with bases loaded
rob ninn( family friend of ours) said he was the worst person he ever met
I don’t care what anyone says. I’m a Braves fan in my 30s. I saw Bonds pre PEDS.
Yes, he made a mistake due to his ego, a massive mistake and maybe an even bigger mistake by lying about it (ironically Raphael Palmeiro scolded and pointed at members of Congress for correctly accusing him of PED use.
Bonds would’ve been a 1st ballot HOFer without ever even drinking a protein shake let alone taking PEDs. He was the equivalent of Bryce Harper during Harper’s MVP seasons except unlike Harper he provided 30-35 stolen bases and wasn’t a liability in the OF instead won 7 Gold Gloves.
Think about how much THAT, pre PEDs, Bonds would’ve been worth.
Yeah he 100% should still be in the HOF, the dude was one of the best to ever play the game and far worse players and fellow cheaters have gotten in.
Imagine getting jumped by six people and then being blamed for it😂
Sounded like every cop on African Americans.
Didn’t he become a coach or something? Seems like this documentary is short.
Excellent video. Really brought back memories of an era!
If my guy sucked in the playoffs and attitude problems that cause problems in the clubhouse I can see why people disregard him
I don’t care what anybody says, Barry Bonds is one of the best MLB players.
By just stats yes, but PED’s are illegal but I still think he’s good. He had good defense and a good eye so he had some skill. But no where near the best player mainly cause PED’s.
No he’s not!! Beroids
@Greg G 🤓
@BaseballMVP26everyone else did them? You don’t know what you are talking about. I bet you can’t list enough players that were on roids at the time to account for even just 1% of the total active players from that time.
Agreed..not one of the best..numeral uno
Barry was the greatest ball player to ever play without steroids. With steroids, he became a god.
Um no Bonds roid years is what put him into a different stratosphere in those years he would have been declining instead he put up his best seasons ever 2000-04 Griffey was slightly better 1990-99 and Bonds was one of the worst choke artists in playoff history pre 02 Super steroids
Yea but I get while people hate him bc everyone seems to just think he’s a dick and roids just made everyone hate him more
19:00 Spoken like a true BOSS! John 8-7.
Just remember... It is hall of fame. Not hall of stats.
All good MLB players are famous, this doesnt mean anything.
Bonds got HUGE. I remember walking by Benihana’s in Japantown, SF. Just walking by and I saw a huge head sitting at a table. Who’s goddamn head is that!?? I double back and it’s Bonds for sure.
Lol
He’s not even in MLB The Show. Am I wrong?
The steroid usage is much more forgivable than the way he treated other human beings.
This exactly. I don’t like Bonds for no other reason than because of the situation with his wife.
It's the 'holier than thou' writers who also went out of their way to make Barry look as bad as possible.
@BMac I mean, thats just how fans are. If you are on their team, they will mostly cheer you on no matter what. Just look at Springer and the Jays. Altough a confirmed Astro cheater, Springer doesnt seem to have a beef with Toronto fans
BB was the best player in MLB long before he took steroids. He actually had a HOF career before Steroids.
I always thought why does everyone hate bonds. Then around 2004-06 sometime I don’t remember exactly I had an interaction with him. After that interaction I then knew why everyone hated him. Bonds did not need the media to make him look like a jerk he did a fine job himself
Calm down George Santos
Sound like ppl was hating on Barry
It’s disappointing to hear that Bonds is so hated. He hit his 600th on my birthdate. As a result, I always kinda viewed him as my childhood hero.
As someone who's known him since he was 4 years old, he was always a good dude to my family and I. He had a hard childhood that nobody really brings up and he was raised to hate the media because the media was really racist towards his family and treated them bad as well. People that know him know that he was scapegoated. He's still the best, if not his godfather, to ever do it.
@Joe D cool story bro
I was 12 years old and in SF when he was approching his 600th, I may still have the shirt I got from some street vendor.
1:52 same swing!
Bonds is Jon Jones of Baseball. He was great but ruined it all by himself.
@PHX Master cheating*
despite their flaws both are greats in my eyes
Both guys GOATs on paper, but did things to taint their legacies so that many fans won’t consider them
Barry ex-communication was necessary to prevent the record books becoming even more laughable
Baseball is a team sport. Barry, for all of his crazy skills, appeared to have played mostly for himself. I think that's likely why most of the other players hated him. Not a HOF fan, so to me it's irrelevant. One of the greatest for sure, but not a likeable character. I bet if he got SF or Pitt, PA some WS rings, they would've forgiven him.
@Chazz X Most of his teammates yup. Some did like him. He clearly was a salty guy to be around though
@Settle Down his teammates couldn't stand his antics
The fans didn't hate him that much. The media despised him because of their negative interactions with him. They would never have forgiven him, and to this day they still haven't. He won't get into the Hall til those media guys are dead is my best guess. That's how much the media hated him.
7:53 so not as bad as Nagasaki?
I met barry in seattle in 1996 5 hrs before the game outside the kingdom. he was nothing but nice to me. he didn't sign anything and wouldnt take pictures but he spent 20 minutes letting calming me down in the middle of a panic attack because i got to meet my hero. i do wish more people got to see that barry.
Cuz he didn’t get that roid rage
I agree many times in the Clark bar adjacent to three rivers stadium, here in Pittsburgh, he bought a round of drinks for everyone. I have also interacted with him on a personal level and found him to be okay with me.
Big Papi also did steroids but he got into the HOF because the media liked him. It’s become such a joke.
Sports writers do the voting. Bonds relationship sucked with reporters, writers and everyone else it seemed. He is as much to blame as well as the reporters and writers that dislike him.
If steroids were the hurdle how did Selig make it in? The guy who was the biggest winner of the steroid era and the guy most culpable in the flourishing of the steroid era. I'm agreeing with you just adding on to your point about the Hall being a joke
Bonds and Roger Clemens were almost the same. Both had their careers launch, peak, and coincide at exactly the same time, both were generational talents, both were massive cancers for their respective teams, both already had HOF-lock careers prior to taking steroids, and both got a lot of shit for lying over steroids.
Oh, but one main difference: Clemens got caught grooming an up and coming country singer named Mindy McCready and somehow got away with it, and it pretty much ruined her life and led to her tragic death as well.
He also had a final "farewell" in Boston in 2003 when he supposedly retired but it became awkward when he came back the following year.
A few years later, he fucked over Boston in 2007, going to New York when he said he wanted to play for his favorite team for his last season despite teasing the Red Sox so much over potentially returning.
There really could be an entirely separate video made on why everybody hated Roger Clemens, there's much more lore aside than what I listed above.
Speaking of pitchers, Jonathan Papelbon (or Papeldouche depending on how much you hate him) might be a possibility too, his whole career is fascinating on and off the field due to his eccentricity and how much controversy he attracted regularly, especially later in his career with Philly and Washington.
Selig, who watched it happen and did nothing, is in the Hall. That's all you need to know about how hypocritical these writers really are.
@Lakest Indeed though you should have clarify this earlier since you made it sounded like it was the only reason. There are tons of things going on that made it difficult for her to recover.
@iamhungey12345 I never directly said it was the main reason, it just kicked off her life's trajectory. I however definitely think the suicide was in part due to Clemens' grooming, the news coverage in 2008 and subsequent fallout, but I'd say that the suicide of her partner David Wilson is definitely the main reason. We're deviating a bit, but what a tragic life.
@Lakest Basically you were assuming. It certainly didn't help but you can't really chalk it up as the main reason as there's also the fact that her career had a struggle and was never able to get back to her early fame since the late 1990s and had suffered from domestic abuse in her relationship with McKnight and even returned to the guy at one point. There were a lot of things going on that led up to her suicide.
@Jayson T Abused and groomed kids usually don't lead the best of lives afterwards and keep their trauma to themselves, that is what happened to Mindy.
I'd say he shouldn't have gotten crap for the minor stuff but he for sure deserved to get shit for the more serious things. Plus teammates hate him as well, not just media. That being said he's still a top 3 player ever.
Facts
Barry should be in the Hall bc you cant tell the story of the MLB without him
I don't know about everybody hating him,I don't.
Barry was the face of steroids only because he was the greatest player ever to take steroids. Who could you say had a better eye at the plate than Barry? Ted Williams is the only answer. Bonds was probably a headache to deal with in the clubhouse and certainly had a war with the media, but he is a top 10 player of all-time. He is now like Pete Rose, remembered for all the wrong things. One things is certain though, he will always be a massive part of MLB lore and history.
More hated than A-Rod? I dunno
I say we have a drug league and see how far the human body can go
But yeah, I think the National League should keep the old school vibe with no DH and the pitcher having to bat. Then the American League can let them roid it up and even have multiple DHs in the lineup just to have more sluggers. Also allow runners to break up double plays at 2nd and collide with the catcher at the plate! Total bush league lol
I kind of agree with that. I mean they didn’t test for drugs back in the early days and especially in the golden age of baseball, everyone knows most players were all in feta means, but nothings ever said about that and they don’t have any kind of Asterix beside their records.
9:49 lol i love how unfazed this reporter is and hits him back with "YOUR slump" and Barry knew he couldn't do or say anything
barry DID have a response, but it was so damn lame
@Sean Jeffcoach?
Ha ha got eem!!!!!!!!!
Huehuehuehuehuehue
Every upload is pure gold man
I mean why the hell were baseball players testifying at a grand jury. Who exactly was hurt by this. Am pretty sure mlb didn't refund their money from it
Galaxy brain meme:
Barry Bonds the greatest HR hitter of all time = small brain
Barry Bonds is the most toxic player of all time = slightly enlightened brain
Barry Bonds is the best player ever to draw walks = Galaxy Brain
Mr. Guaranteed 1st Base
I didn't hate him.
love your videos. you got one about Griffey? if not i'd love to see one
Bro you put videos together so well. I don’t even enjoy baseball that much but your videos are so crisp
My dad and older brother won tickets to the 1996 All-Star game in Philly. This guy, at age 12, got to eat at the dinner banquet with some of the players the night before the game, and sat next to Barry Bonds.
The asshole never said a word to my brother the entire night, despite sitting next to him.
The guy didnt give a shit to anybody, so probably he wouldnt talk to you unless you started the conversation
2000 Kent won mvp was not the year they went to the World Series
I know these videos take lots of time to put together, So thank you for entertainment! I always look forward to your uploads. Great stuff!
5:45 This is the moment Heisenberg became Mama Celeste.
Best baseball channel on KZclip hands down.
Foolish Baseball is also great highly recommend!!
@Peltimies that’s your opinion
I don’t even like baseball and I don’t miss any of his videos.
@Peltimies facts
Best sports channel.
I wish we had a guy like this for every sport.
I really do love your videos & story telling
Bonds kinda dug his own grave with how he treated people. He's the best hitter we'll ever see, but his attitude did him no favours
@rara mcgeeut what’s the point of an asterisk if any team that won during that time would have and asterisk by their name?
@Vinny Manny sure can.
@rara mcgee So, should we put an asterisk on teams that won championships with players who were known to have been using steroids? Because that can be said for almost every team that won it in the late 90s to 2005 .
Naw Gywnn is the hitting goat. Binds has the power hitting title tho. With a *
You still need to hit the ball even if you take steroids
I’m a casual baseball fan but your videos have made me want to get more involved as a fan - thank you for all your content 🙏🏾
Everyone knows why
Insane stat- Bonds has more intentional walks than a combined EVERY player whoever played for the Tampa Bay Rays EVER. That’s EVERYONE from the Rays combine from 1998- present.
Insane.
Yeah, but you pitch to a Rays
That’s so wild 😂
Holy cow i didn't know this stat. I know the stat if you took his hr total and made it into outs then he would have a better ops/slugging than David ortiz.
100% collusion -
I am no fan of the Giants, Bonds was definitely given a bad rap. I was praying the A's would pick him up. They probably would have made it to the World Series with him on the roster.
That big of a hat & shoe size change in a grown man tells us all we need to know.
Naw this pro bonds spin isn’t working for me
As a person, Bonds is a good person. I met Bonds at Dodger stadium. At times can be over the top but what athlete pro athlete is not. However, as a sportsman, yes he does suck, as a sportsman!
The greatest to ever do it cry to your mom if you think otherwise
Bonds sounds like a great heel
Black Ty Cobb
He’s the Randy Orton of baseball, the legend killer or legend record breaker
Literally
He is.
Its my birthday and I couldnt ask for anything better than a new BDE video
Happy birthday, it's my birthday as well :)
Hey, happy birthday dude, have a nice day, eat some cake :)
Happy birthday
Yeah, this basically cements my opinion that the only reason Bonds isn't in the Hall is because the media always has and always will hate him.
@Robert McNearny I know, right? Like a bank robber blaming security cameras.
Guy acts like a baby, uses drugs, media reports in it, and some how it is the medias fault. Yea, ok
This guy gives me major Kanye vibes.
Barry Bonds is the best. Head and shoulders over closest to him.
@Kirk Cavanaugh podemos continuar totalmente esse debate sobre protocolo de internet e conversa fiada, se você quiser. Podemos começar com o português e passar para o espanhol, se preferir.
@Kirk Cavanaugh but we can totally continue this debate about internet protocol and the abc's of trash talking if you'd like. I'd be happy to explain the difference in multiple ways or languages.
@Fort Nag Wow. as soon as someone asks you to explain something THAT YOU SAID ABOUT MY POST IN THE FIRST PLACE...you get all defensive and act like you are somebody? Kindly get over yourself. Trust me, it will not take long. Bye.
I feel like they, they being everyone that spoke bad on him just didn’t like Barry Bonds cause he was him and him being an asshole didn’t make it any better
You should do a video on Rick Ankiel
I am glad you finally made a bonds video. 😄👍
Best hitter I've ever seen...but he should autograph Sid Bream's wooden leg
The ball was hit to LCF, and his glove is on the right hand.
He's a d bag but still a great player. Doesn't seem like he matued or anything since he was 20 ha
One of my Juco coaches knew Barry at ASU. Everyone kept away from him.
Was he radioactive?
LOL! How come?
No one in the bay area from the fans. Hate it Barry Bonds. The news media hated him. Which made fans of other cities hate him.
The media narrative of steroids made people hate him
His daughter ran track at a school in the same district as mine growing up. Barry would always be there supporting her, and he was always kind to anyone who went up to him to talk. I don’t have single bad thing to say about the man. A very misunderstood character.
@star that’s a little more than “being surly with people” which is what I was responding to in the comment from David. Obviously he did some awful stuff back in the day, some incidents like the one you mention are even substantiated. I’m just saying he was a noticeably changed man in retirement. Maybe it was the drugs, maybe it was the pressure, or the money, or maybe the fact that nobody cared who he was even though he was one of the best. Maybe all of it. I can’t justify what he was or what he did, but I believe he changed.
@David Tsang Honestly, I don’t care if you think I’m lying. I don’t need validation from people on the internet. I’m sharing a memory of mine that is relevant to the video. I didn’t even expect people to read it.
@Tom Foolery He literally beat up his pregnant wife. I'm sure she was just antagonizing him though huh?
@Tom Foolery How do we know if your story is real? You could be just another guy railing for him to be in the HOF... See how that works? We could all be talking out of our collective arses...
@Mizer I can’t speak on how he was when he played, but I know people can change.
They hated Barry bonds because they were jealous of the fact that he was the most gifted played in baseball to come around since his GodFather Mays... the world always gonna be jealous of true talent, period. And because of that fact when he got caught with steroids it just gave people even more fuel to hate him. Fuck the world... he was one of the 5 best players to ever play before steroids... no-one had the capacity to hit over .320, have a .430+ OBP with 40/40 potential (home run/SB) while always being a gold glover fielder. Best all-around talent in the game along with Rodriguez and he was posting seasons like this regularly before his 2001-2004 crazy stint. People just don't understand what true baseball talent is and how Bonds was pretty much the epitome of it. What a fcking tragedy.
In the 90’s, I watched Braves baseball everyday, and didn’t understand the hatred for Bonds or care about his personal attitude at all. Non of the stuff that you mentioned in first 14 minutes was known to me. But, as a Braves fan, he just seemed like a villainous and threatening character, that always seemed to fail to preform against the Braves future HoF pitchers. My personal dislike for him is more a general dislike of steroid era ending the small ball games of the 90’s national league. Baseball isn’t about men hitting homers; that’s just not why people watch. Baseball is a team sport with strategy and chance and emotion and flawed calls and flawed individuals. Baseball is a gentleman’s sport that plays out over a season like a soap opera. The sport would be more successful if promoted as it is, and not transformed into something else.
@TheMagnificentTube I haven't watched baseball since 09. Steroid era ruined the game imo. Nowadays you have clowns pimping hrs like they're first to do it. Just too much
@TheMagnificentTube So many teams lack a reliable bullpen. Early 2000 Oakland A's come to mind. Tim Hudson, Mark Mulder and Barry Zito were great, but had a shaky bullpen.
@TheMagnificentTube It's just complicated to put a perfect bullpen together. In 96, Wohlers just imploded. They had competent bullpens, they just never found a closer til Rocker and he had his own issues. Those late 90's Yankees teams were as perfect as bullpens get. The transitions from middle to setup to closer were flawless at times. Of course, they had Stanton, a former Brave. When they finally lost, Rivera was always on the mound when they blew lead. Great, but not perfect.
@Chazz X just, since you seem to know baseball, you ever wonder why their pitching staff was so great, but then their closers always had issues? I think playing golf together everyday lead to that command style of pitching that really Greg Maddox is known for.
@TheMagnificentTube Braves owned the NL, despite lacking world series trophies. They lost to some pretty good teams unfortunately. Some bullpen issues as well cost them in big games.
I still, actually believe him!
@Jerry Davis indeed. His greatness is undeniable. I mean its like he was made purposely to play this game and what with the greatness surrounding him and coaching/helping him (godfather willie mays, his pops bobby, his uncle reggie jackson, his best friend tony gywnn) i mean come on. If anyone was going to do the things he did it was going to be him🤷
Idk if I believe him or not but it’s never been proven. Even as a Dodgers fan he was my 2nd favorite player growing up bc he didn’t give a rat’s ass about what the media had to say, besides his longevity of greatness
You have to. Bonds failed as many drug tests as Ken Griffey jr🤷
The best there is, the best there was and the best there ever will be.
Ohtani is already better
@HH13 Barry never had a smile to lose!
Funny how you used Bret Harts catchphrase even though bonds is most definitely the Shawn Michaels of baseball😭
@Keith Hulst Great argument. I'll say Barry's the greatest hitter of all time, regardless of juice! Best eye and bat discipline ever. What would Mickey Mantle have been like if he wasn't drunk for his entire career? I will say, though, Rickey Henderson should be in the conversation as the greatest baseball player of all time!
It's really difficult to give him that title when we know he cheated the second half of his career. Especially when you consider players like Willie Mays and Ken Griffey Jr. that did it the right way. Also, what would Ted Williams numbers be like if he had not served his country for as many years as he did? Babe Ruth was a solid pitcher for the first few years of his career, what would his numbers be like if he had been full time position player his entire career? Sorry, I can not and will not accept Barry Bonds as the greatest of all time. However; I do believe he belongs in the hall of fame...but maybe wait until after he as assumed room temperature. I mean why should he get in while he's still alive when players like Ron Santo didn't get that opportunity (many of the MLB HOF voters suck)?
Let’s go I caught a minor mistake. At 8:05 he says baseball slam dunk contest but that event was a dunk contest with any famous athlete that didn’t play basketball hosted by foot locker.
Thanks for telling us the story of Bonds before steroids, it’s not a story often told even though he had a HOF-worthy career before the roids. And a HOF-temper too.
Look at his 98 season especially the advanced metrics, his OPS was unreal but not a soul was paying attention
He was the best hitter I ever saw and I saw him play a lot. Don’t know about his personality. His father was my favorite player when I was a kid.
Not me, Bonds still clears Trout as the true GOAT.
I mean he cheated. Of course everyone is going to treat the guy poorly. However I think MLB should allow steroids but also make every field 10 feet larger.
Best in any era. Literally
Barry is the GOAT IDGAF
edit: wtf steroids make ur feet grow?
can you do a video on babe ruth?
Bond is the goat. You can't teach hand eye Coordination. Steroids saved baseball. But yet after baseball got everything they wanted out of these great players they black ball them? 98 with McGuire and Sosa that was the greatest season ever in baseball. Chasing the record. But yet both yet both those men aren't even consider HOFers? Then let's talk about Ruth who only played with whites. Or in the 70s and 80s when everyone was doing speed. BONDS is the goat.
Correct he is the greatest. Ruth and Cobb didn’t face global talent, they didn’t face specialty relief pitching, and ground rule doubles were counted as home runs until 1930.
Ken Griffey Jr was my favorite player as a kid. I was aware of Bonds, but I never gave him a second thought until the end of his career when he was obviously juicing. While this video gives a lot of context to the hate Bonds received, to me it seems like he earned every bit of it.
A weaker teammate getting a better contract offer makes it understandable as to why he was an asshole.
Every bit of it is a huge reach
Yeah KGJ was an amazing, HOF caliber player, but one of the reasons he was a superstar was he was seen as a nice guy and marketable, which he absolutely was. If Barry had been half way decent, he would have been Bo Jackson level famous in the 90s
He would have been the GOAT without the roids. Now he’s only remembered for that.
Easily influenced headline reading sheep hate Barry Bonds. He wasn't nice to reporters, might have been a real jerk. There has not been a better player in his generation. 85% of them juiced. He was a star before and after. PED's don't give you patience at the plate, and he'd see 1-2 pitches to hit in a series from 2000-2003
Did you say baseball slam dunk contest?
I was just thinking, "man I really want a BDE video right about now." 30 mins later here we are! Hell ya man the matrix is nice sometimes
no such thing
same
Astros 2017 are worse than Barry Bonds in terms of effect of cheating. No one in the history of baseball cheated like the 2017 Astros. The statistics tell the story. Yu Darvish has the highest career K rate among righthanded pitchers in MLB history (!), and against the Astros in June (before the cheating system was implemented), he held them to one hit in 7 innings. But in the World Series, with the cheating, the Astros only had ONE swing and miss at an offspeed pitch. If you understand baseball, you know that's statistically highly improbable. Yes, it really wasn't possible against a team that stole signs throughout the postseason, resulting in statistical anomalies that the baseball world has never seen. A team where (with the sole exception of 40 year old Beltran) every single player improved OPS from 2016 to 2017, and the players with the worst career stats saw the most improvement (Jake Marisnick and Marwyn Gonzalez improved by over +200). I do respect Jose Altuve- I think he is very talented and according to Correa, Altuve was disgusted by the cheating, and got angry when teammates tried to feed him signs. But the fact of the matter is that he had the best year of his career in 2017. It's a massive advantage. Imagine not having to read scouting reports or watch films late at night, trying to figure out pitcher tendencies. In fact, you don't even need to scout opposing pitchers - a huge advantage over teams that were trying to compete honestly. No wonder they were cheating all season, even against teams that lost 100 games, like the White Sox and the Mariners. At that point, it's not even baseball any more. It's some other game.
The best ever, even if he was a prick!
Yes.
Just like mark McGwire
Can someone tell me how steroids improve your skill in baseball
Hank Aaron is still the true home run king.