Bonds' run is missing something - Sporting Goods

Whenever I think of Barry Bonds breaking McGwire's home run record, it just doesn't seem right. When McGwire and Sosa went on their amazing homer rampage in '98, it was magical. Bonds's chase this year has been lackluster at best.

There's plenty of reasons why this is so. First off, Bonds is not too popular. I, for one, think his primary concern has always been and always will be Mr. Bonds. Anyone notice that his almost 20-homer improvement has come in a contract year?

Don't think that Bonds isn't thinking about his paycheck with every swing of the bat. Look at the way he swings this year, its much different from any of the years in the past. His smooth swing of years past has turned into a sort of golf swing uppercut, clearly meant to hit more homers. Home runs sell tickets, and anything a player does that sells tickets certainly gets noticed by the owner when its time to negotiate contracts.

Second, Bonds' emergence this year is too sudden. With McGwire, you knew it was only a matter of time until he stayed healthy long enough to challenge the record. Same for Griffey, who came pretty close consistently. But no one predicted Bonds to have this kind of year, which makes it seem less legitimate. If he breaks the walks record, great. He is one of the greatest at drawing walks ever, certainly no one would challenge him getting that record. But he's not known as a an upper echelon home run hitter, not one in the same category as Mcgwire, Sosa and Griffey at least. It's very possible that this could be his only year with these kind of home run numbers.

Another thing I've noticed is that pitchers are for some reason giving Bonds pitches to hit despite how many times he's made them and others pay for it. When McGwire and Sosa were on their run, pitchers pitched around them without a second thought. Not only were they afraid of giving up runs, but they didn't want to get embarrassed with the entire nation watching. Considering how much fewer people are watching Bonds this year, pitchers aren't all that worried about the embarrassment, which is working in Bonds' favor. All in all, its just tough to root for Bonds.