As the media expresses its surprise that Roger Clemens was not on President Bush's latest pardon list, the denigration of Barry Bonds continues, with the Giants essentially removing all record of the fact that Bonds indeed played for the team. On the Clemens front, I thought you actually had to be convicted of a crime to be pardoned, but maybe the Bush administration changed that law too. That's another story though.
Anyway, I think what the Giants are doing is a disgrace. For 15 years, Bonds was a loyal servant who filled the seats, thrilled the fans, and made the Club hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars. And now, because he is implicated in what is widely considered an era-wide problem, the Giants are pretending like he never existed.
Bonds is no saint, but it's just sad that the world we live in is no different than the "game" portrayed by cops, junkies (and others) in HBO's critically acclaimed series The Wire. The only difference is that those of us who don't live on the streets aren't so violent with the moves we make in the game. It's all the same though.
Sports fans deserve more credit than this, and Giants ownership should be ashamed of themselves. Perhaps they'll realize this after their Gross Receipts for 2008 roll in and they're considerably less than they were during the last 15 years with Bonds at the helm. That's when they'll call Bonds next year, and bring him back for a Fan Appreciation Day where they can retire his number. And like every loyal servant, Bonds will probably abide. Or maybe he won't...
Anyway, I think what the Giants are doing is a disgrace. For 15 years, Bonds was a loyal servant who filled the seats, thrilled the fans, and made the Club hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars. And now, because he is implicated in what is widely considered an era-wide problem, the Giants are pretending like he never existed.
Bonds is no saint, but it's just sad that the world we live in is no different than the "game" portrayed by cops, junkies (and others) in HBO's critically acclaimed series The Wire. The only difference is that those of us who don't live on the streets aren't so violent with the moves we make in the game. It's all the same though.
Sports fans deserve more credit than this, and Giants ownership should be ashamed of themselves. Perhaps they'll realize this after their Gross Receipts for 2008 roll in and they're considerably less than they were during the last 15 years with Bonds at the helm. That's when they'll call Bonds next year, and bring him back for a Fan Appreciation Day where they can retire his number. And like every loyal servant, Bonds will probably abide. Or maybe he won't...
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