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You know, there’s been a lot of hand-wringing about this going on as Bonds gets close.

We’ve all been wandering around in some sort of daze hoping some Righteous Baseball Saint will swoop down from the heavens (or the MLB offices, take your pick) and properly identify which of his home runs can now be expunged, since they would not have been home runs but for The Cream and The Clear (tell me that’s not a good band name – although I guess “Cream” has already been done).

It’s not gonna happen.

There’s really only one logical, rational, and realistic response to your question, “what could baseball do to recognize Maris and Aaron as the legitimate home run champions?”

NOTHING

It’s time for all of us to swallow this tough pill and move on.

Who is the single season home run champion? Barry Bonds, with 73. Who is the all-time home run champion? Soon to be Barry Bonds, with 756 or more.

Does it suck for the Maris and Aaron families? Yep. Does it suck for us baseball fans who think those are important and hallowed records? Yep. Does it change the fact that he is about to hit number 756? Nope.

Sometimes you just have to accept that things aren’t fair or right.

Rob
Nice post.
Maybe baseball execs, including players, managers, coaches and ex-players should have a summit and figure this all out.
One of baseball’s greatest traits, especially for those that love the sport (especially the stats geeks), is its numbers, i.e. 20-game seasons, 300 wins, .300 batting average, etc.
Other than doing nothing, which is what is happening now, I wonder if “we” can come up with plan to deal with it.

Although Bonds or anybody else using PEDs is wrong, the real villain here is MLB itself. It’s not as if the use of steroids hasn’t been known–it’s been well-established since the 1970s. But because offense puts fannies in the seats, whereas setting up testing and suspending star players who rules costs the game money. It’s their own selfish greed that got them into this. Now that they’ve made their pretty little bed, they get to lay in it. All historical baseball statistics are meaningless now because they haven’t done what was necessary.

Andy
I agree with everything you said.
That’s why I believe they have to do something with stats, making some sort of statement about them, setting them apart from the real stats. MLB doesn’t know what to do because they hid their eyes, ears and mouths during the steroid era.

It will never happen, but all MLB has to do is hit “shift-8″ on their keyboards!

Not a supporter, I think I would at least be somewhat excited about him doing this if he could at least be a man and admit to his mistakes instead of saying he had no idea what the heck he was putting on or in his body!!

I also agree that MLB is to blame. They need to do blood/hair analysis on these players and nip this. Then again if they are the ones testing and they don’t want others to find out the dirty laundry, that wouldn’t solve a darn thing now would it?

Bottom line, not a supporter, a baseball fan yes, a person who can appreciate how hard this record is to beat yes but not a Bonds supporter!!!

I don’t think they should/could do anything. If they did, it would call into question every single player that played in the last 10 years, including people like Ken Griffey Jr. whom I don’t believe was ever using steriods. However, nobody (at least in my mind) thinks Bonds is the single season of career home run champ. Until Arod or somebody clean breaks the record, Aaron and Maris ARE the home run kings, even though it might not say that in the record book.

Also, although I strongly dislike Bonds, he wasn’t the only player using steriods. If you wasn’t such a bad guy, I don’t think there would be too much talk about it. Last month, Sosa hit his 600th homerun and it was made out to be something great. Did everybody forget that this guy cheated also?? How about Giambi and Pudge. Nobody seems to criticize them, only Bonds and big Mac. There are alot of people whom deserve blame including the players, owners, the players union, the commissioner, the media, and even the fans. We loved seeing all the homeruns and now we are paying the price.

Lastly, I would love to see baseball go back to the days of Ty Cobb, Tris Speaker, and others where there weren’t many homeruns hit, but there was great baseball (from what i have read). Homeruns aren’t anything special if you ask me, I would much rather see a 1-0 game or 3 or 4 hits strung together in a row

Patients…..Let’s be patient as in another 6-7 years there could easily be a new Home Run King (A-Rod). I’m not a huge fan of A-Rod, but his record for Steriods seems pretty clean. Not many people think he uses the stuff and he seems to be a natural hitter. So we must wait and hopefully by the time A-Rod goes to break the record, MLB will get their drug policy figured out.

The only thing MLB really can do is find a way to put a real testing scheme in place–the NFL and NBA seem to have effective ones. Even HGH can be tested as long as testing is regular and every player has an established baseline. Then, baseball will be divided into two great eras—before testing and after testing. Let’s face it–Aaron probably did not take steroids, but he definitely took greenies. Drugs and drugs.

By the way Bill, I cannot believe you were on WEEI today defending the idea of Johnny Pesky being in the dugout. That’s ludicrous. If the Yankees wanted to have Yogi or Reggie in the dugout, you wouldn’t want it, unless they were official coaches.

Bill, you ask such a silly question, “Again, I ask, what could baseball do to recognize Maris and Aaron as the legitimate home run champions?.” MLB will do Nothing! This is an Entertainment Business, fans want to be titillated, as they pay crazy prices for seats to watch the chemically enhanced troglodytes sweat, pant, hit, run and break records never imagined to be eclisped. MLB, IS NOT a True form of Baseball. Want to see some REAL baseball, go to a high school game, Can Am League game, Little League game, American Legion game, Over 30 or 40 League Game or Independant League game. Are Steroids involved? Perhaps, on a a extremely low level, but chances are outstandingly less for that crap and you’ll see players that are “NATURALLY ENHANCED” (existing in or formed by nature opposed to artificial). They are the REAL BALL Players, the ones that garner the highest RESPECT from me. I know and Bill Burt KNOWS, as he has played in the (Sandlot) dusty, tough, grueling over 30 league(s) with and agin’ me. I’ve seen the best baseball on the fields of the neighborhoods. Where TRUTH, HEART and the VALID Love of the game Exisists. Whatever MLB does I DON’T CARE! MLB IS Not TRUE Baseball to me! They Are An industry of entertainment and that’s Ok by me, it’s business, nothing personal, but MLB Isn’t and never will be TRUE BASEBALL, can’t be just by it’ Nature.
Major League Baseball is a lot like The WWE, you know Wrestling. It’s REAL or IS IT REALLY Not REAL? Go FIgure?

I THINK IF THEY ALLOW BOND`S TO HOLD THE RECORD THEN THEY SHOULD ALLOW PETE ROSE INTO THE HALL OF FAME TAKE A LOOK AT BABE RUTH LIFE OUTSIDE OF BASEBALL & TY COBB THEY WHERE NO ANGELS WHAT BROUGHT ABOUT THE BASEBALL COMMISSION IT WAS THE BLACK SOCK`S WORLD SERIES THAT WHY THE COMMISSION WAS FORMED TO KEEP BASEBALL “CLEAN”

John from Belmont, N.H.
Barry Bonds worst days, I believe, are ahead of him. I just think baseball is confused on where to go with this. My guess is there will be some bombshells coming, be it George Mitchell’s investigation or Jose Canseco’s next book, where Bonds will have more questions to answer.