Cry Me a River

I know he's been the bad boy of Major League Baseball for years, but I've always kind of liked Barry Bonds. His on-the-field performance was nothing short of awesome, and his off-the-field antics I thought were usually more entertaining than annoying. It always used to seem to me that he got a bum rap from the media and all the Barry Bashers who love to hate him. But, that was in the past, and like Mark McGwire, I'm not here to discuss the past.

My attitude about Barry began to change in the last year or two as he became more and more dominant at the plate. My opinion didn't change because he was dominant, but because when a pitcher actually pitched to him and the inevitable happened, he would make a point of admiring the beauty of his own work. A little too much mustard on that hot dog.

But even then, I didn't hate the guy. I could kind of understand how frustrated he must've gotten all those times at the plate when the opposing team was too afraid to pitch to him. I'm sure the relief he felt when he swatted one out of the park after countless walks was intense, and admiring his handiwork when he was given the opportunity was understandable.

But then, this summer came. Here he is 11 homeruns away from passing Babe Ruth on the all-time homerun list, and he admits that he used steroids. (To be fair, I don't think he actually admitted it as much as he avoided denying it, claiming that he took something his trainer gave him but had no idea what it was.) This summer, with the allegations against Bonds, the claims by Jose Canseco, and all the resulting hullabaloo was one rough off-season for baseball. The game may never recover the status it once had, and Barry Bonds was at the center of that storm. For that, I can't forgive him.

I was really happy actually to hear that he might miss the upcoming season. Maybe that's just what the game needs - a season free of 'Roid Man and the inevitable controversy when he passes Babe Ruth.

And then, I hear his diatribe yesterday during a break from spring training:

"I'm just tired, guys. I'm really tired. You wanted me to jump off the bridge. I finally jumped. You wanted to bring me down. You finally have brought me and my family down. You've finally done it, everybody, all of you. So now go pick a different person. I'm done."

When asked to whom he was referring, Bonds looked at the reporters around him and said calmly, "You, you, you, you, you, you the media, everybody. You finally got there."

Asked to detail what bothered him, Bonds said, "Inner hurt -- physically, mentally, done. Mentally drained. I'm tired of my kids crying."

Oh, by the way. Even if Barry doesn't play this season, he still gets $18 million guaranteed salary.

So, cry me a river, big boy. Better yet, just go away.