Swing Barry, Barry...Swing!

With the Jays in San Fran, it's hard not to think about the whole Barry Bonds/homerun thing. Personally, I've had varying opinions on the whole matter, but I had an epiphany last night while watching Bonds hit #747.

So here goes...

I will be alive when probably the most storied record in all of professional sports is broken. I don't really care who you are or what sport you like, it's a cool feeling knowing I'll be around for it. It's not like it's going to happen a lot. The record was set, beaten and about to be beaten again. It's taken the majority of the existence of Major League Baseball for it to happen. End of story. Will someone beat the record again? Who knows. Who knows if I'll be alive for it. But I am now.

A lot has been made of Barry Bonds and steroids. Well, I think my epiphany helped me finally take off my rose coloured glasses and realise...before performance-enhancing drugs were banned, lots of guys probably used them to get a leg up. Anything to have a competitive advantage. Is that okay today? No. BUT, and this is a big but, at the time they weren't disallowed. As Leonard Koppett drives home in A Thinking Fan's Guide To Baseball you always have to consider the record/information/statistic in the context of the time.

It's an eternal struggle as a fan of "the game" that guys would chose to abuse their bodies and in my mind tarnish the ideals of fair play. (Something I think MLB has tried to promote more of in the last little while [i.e. luxury tax]). In the end though, better play and better numbers means more money. Major League sports after all, no matter how much you want to romanticize them, are still businesses.

As for surly Barry...who are we to judge? As I read an article about Ted Williams' being cryogenically frozen yesterday, his daughter made a good point. Williams' never wanted to be famous. He just wanted to be the best hitter in Major League Baseball. I can't be sure, but I'm thinking being famous might not be in the top 3 priorities for pro athletes. Not in the same way for wannabe rock stars or actors, maybe.

However, at the end of the day, the guy gets paid millions of $$$ to play a game. A game only a very select few ever get the chance to play at the level he does. That a large part of the population aren't even close to being good enough to play in the minor leagues. A game that 1/2 of the population (women) don't even have the opportunity to make a sustainable living playing. Understandably, people get surly with Barry when Barry's surly with them. Including me sometimes.

Does that make it okay? Maybe, maybe not. I'm starting to think there might be a sliding scale of surliness in relation to notoriety. The more notoriety, the higher the possibility (and maybe, sadly, probability?) of surliness. Still, that doesn't mean it is or isn't okay. It's just offereing a possibility to put the whole thing into context.

The more I think about it, the more I kinda wish San Fran was coming to Toronto so I could possibly see Barry hit one out in person. Whether it's the record breaking or record extending one, I don't care. I get to be a part of history, and I think any true baseball fan loves that feeling.

So I say "Swing Barry, Barry...Swing!" with no malice, no hate, no mal-intent. Just the love and support of a true baseball fan who finally realises how precious this moment is going to be in baseball history. I'm just glad I realised it before it was too late.

Last point though. I wish people would stop getting on Hank Aaron's back for saying he's not going to follow Barry around while he chases down the record. Would you want to? Aaron devoted 22 years to the major leagues alone. That doesn't count his years in the minors. He's given more than enough time to baseball. He's retired now. I don't blame him for not wanting to spend more time away from his family and the life he's built for himself away from baseball, just to follow a guy around who's breaking a record he set. I can't say for sure, but maybe Aaron's moved past it. Everyone else should too. Stop focusing on Aaron not being there, and start focusing on the momentous event that's probably going to happen in the next 2 wks (I'd say.)

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Game two against the Jays and Giants goes tonight. AJ Burnett (sometimes I just wanna call him "Wild Thing") goes for the Jays as the Giants counter with Noah Lowry. Maybe I jinxed the Jays yesterday since they didn't seem to be able to win 3 road games in a row. As long as they win the series. I won't even mind if Barry hits another homerun as long as it's not the game winning run. Towers didn't pitch bad, I think he starting getting fatigued. Go Jays Go.

Until tomorrow.
JaysGirl5