SID/Web Editor
kyleg@hawaiiwinterbaseball.com
Wow, what a day.
After all the hype, all the anticipation, the deluge of media coverage--and, of course, the controversy--Barry Bonds finally connected for his record-breaking 756th home run tonight at San Francisco's AT&T Park. Sure, the rumors of Bonds' alleged use of performance enhancing substances have put a damper on this historic event, but give the guy some credit. He broke the record, and until it is proven that Bonds cheated, we should honor and celebrate the mark.
It didn't surprise me that Bonds did indeed hit No. 756, but that he did it in such close proximity to some of the other recent milestones achieved this season. We have been treated to Tom Glavine's 300th win on Sunday, Alex Rodriguez's 500th home run on Saturday, and Craig Biggio's 3000th hit earlier in the year, just to name a few. Couple those with the recent induction of Cal Ripken Jr. and Tony Gwynn into the Hall of Fame, and you can see why baseball fans have been spoiled in 2007.
So what's next? Who, if anyone,
will be the next Home Run King? Will it be A-Rod, who many predict has a
legitimate shot at 800 bombs? Or how about Ken Griffey Jr.; he'll need to
string together a handful of successful and healthy years to have a shot, but
don't count him out. And of course, Ryan Howard has shown signs of becoming
possibly the greatest power hitter of all time.
It will be an interesting couple of years as we watch and see if anyone can encroach on Bonds' new mark. But for now, let's celebrate the feat, and give Barry the credit he's due.
Posted under - Records | 14 comments