Barry Bonds’ name is on the Baseball Hall of Fame ballot for one last time, as the former San Francisco Giants star is trying to enter Cooperstown.
Many voters have ignored him because of his ties to steroids and performance-enhancing drugs.
However, he should be a member of the Hall by now, and here are three reasons why.
3. He Was One Of The Game’s Brightest Stars Before The Steroid Era
The steroid era is a loose term, but is generally considered as such from the mid-1990s to the mid or late-2000s.
Bonds strung together several campaigns worthy of Hall of Fame-status well before then.
He made his big league debut in 1986 with the Pittsburgh Pirates.
With the Pirates, Bonds had a 9.9-WAR (Wins Above Replacement) season in 1990.
During his first year with the San Francisco Giants, in 1993, he had a 10.5-WAR season.
By the end of 1995, he had 292 home runs and 340 stolen bases.
Then he bulked up and extended his peak, achieving incredible numbers.
But he was already a star even before his involvement with steroids.
Bonds didn’t need steroids to be a Hall of Famer.
2. MLB Hasn’t Banned Him From The Ballot
Bonds was indicted in 2007 on four counts of perjury and one count of obstruction of justice for the BALCO scandal.
The problem with banning Bonds from Hall consideration would be that many players used steroids in the 90s and early 2000s because there was no mandatory testing until 2003.
Why does it matter if you were tied to steroids officially or not? There’s certainly guys already in the HOF that took steroids it doesn’t take a genius to see that. Barry Bonds should be in the HOF and I really don’t think there’s an argument to keep him out imho.
— Alex Wood (@Awood45) December 6, 2021
Preventing Bonds from entering the Hall would mean doing the same with many of his colleagues.
And Bonds didn’t fail a test.
Bonds admitted to unknowingly using steroids supplied by his trainer, but the steroid era was a league-wide issue that MLB couldn’t control for years.
Punishing only a handful of players doesn’t make any sense.
If MLB hasn’t banned him and prevented him from appearing on the ballot, then voters should be able to decide if he has a case to be enshrined based on his numbers.
2. On the PED suspects: My stance continues to be that Major League Baseball and the Hall of Fame can disqualify anyone they choose — and they have. They haven’t disqualified anyone on PED grounds. Therefore, we can only vote for the best players on the ballot.
— Brian MacPherson (@brianmacp) December 14, 2021
And his numbers are on par with almost every player in the history of the game.
If his name is on the ballot, why wouldn’t voters select him?
1. He Has A Strong Case To Be Considered The G.O.A.T.
The numbers Bonds achieved during his playing career were simply otherworldly.
Besides Babe Ruth, no offensive player has had Bonds’ impact.
And the level of competition in the days Ruth played the game are not comparable to modern baseball.
The ‘G.O.A.T.” moniker (which means greatest of all time) could very well fit Bonds and his statistical excellence.
No player in the history of the game hit more home runs over his career (762) and in a single season (73) than Bonds.
Bonds hit .298/.444/.607 with 2,227 runs scored, 1,996 RBI, 762 homers, and 514 stolen bases.
He is the only member of the 500-500 club.
His wRC+ (weighted Runs Created Plus) is 173, where 100 is considered average.
Seeing Bonds hit in the early-2000s was a thing of beauty.
Pitchers didn’t want to pitch to him, and when they did, the odds of a home run were high.
He even received an intentional walk with the bases loaded.
Bonds is fourth on the WAR leaderboard per Baseball Reference, behind Ruth and two pitchers of the early 1900s.
Considering the more competitive era in which he played in, Bonds could be the greatest player ever.
He should be in the Hall of Fame.
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Dan says
I agree, in my lifetime there has never been any other player who could control the game and strike fear in opposing defenses. Because of this, he belongs in the HOF. His stats speak for themselves.
Anonymous says
I agree with you, Dan. I am 81 years old and have been a Barry Bonds fan since his rookie year. I just loved to watch his at-bat to see the results. I also have 700+ of his Rookie Cards. I still have hopes of him becoming a HOF’er.
Louis