Barry Bonds - ever the professional

[Chip R]

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/15928253.htm

Bonds' conduct among issues

GIANTS WANT PROMISES OF BETTER BEHAVIOR

By Andrew Baggarly

Mercury News

The Giants are laying the groundwork for potential contract negotiations with Barry Bonds, but baseball sources said they are undecided whether to offer a contract to the 42-year-old left fielder.

Money is only one factor. Sources said the Giants also want assurances that Bonds would conduct himself in a more professional manner than he did this past season.

The prevailing opinion is that the Giants will seek to re-sign Bonds, who needs 22 home runs to break Hank Aaron's career record of 755.

But according to sources inside and outside the Giants clubhouse, Bonds exasperated teammates and coaches several times last season when he chose to make himself unavailable in pinch-hitting situations.

Multiple sources confirmed that Bonds had taken off his uniform during the ninth inning of a 5-3 loss at Milwaukee on Sept. 24. The Giants brought the potential winning run to the plate, but rookie catcher Eliezer Alfonzo hit into a game-ending double play and the loss officially eliminated the Giants from the division race.

Afterward, Manager Felipe Alou covered for Bonds, saying it was a manager's decision.

In another instance, April 20 in Arizona, Bonds disobeyed Alou when asked to take left field after drawing a walk as a pinch hitter in the ninth inning. Alou had used reserve outfielder Jason Ellison earlier in the game and was forced to move third baseman Pedro Feliz to the outfield, where he hadn't played all season.

Bonds also raised eyebrows when he didn't appear as a pinch hitter in a 6-5 loss at Washington on July 27. The Giants were down three runs when Alfonzo hit a two-out, two-run home run in the ninth. Bonds had gone back to the clubhouse, so Alou sent Todd Greene to the plate. Greene struck out.

"I saw him with a bat in the tunnel,'' Alou said after that loss. "By the time I saw that, the game was over.''

The Giants were 0-6 on that trip.

And on Sept. 30, the day the Los Angeles Dodgers clinched a playoff spot with a 4-2 victory at AT&T Park, a source said Bonds was napping in the clubhouse during the ninth inning.

Unlike past years, many of the problems that Bonds generated remained under wraps last season because of veteran clubhouse leaders who made it a mission in spring training to avoid distractions.

But sources said that before the Giants open talks to bring him back, upper management wants assurances that Bonds would be attentive to new manager Bruce Bochy and handle himself in a professional manner.
Bonds' agent, Jeff Borris, declined comment when asked about the incidents last season.

The new collective bargaining agreement allows the Giants and Bonds to negotiate past the spring reporting date, but sources say the Giants would determine whether to offer Bonds a contract or let him walk by the end of December.

The Giants have placed two calls to Borris since the season ended to lay the foundation for potential negotiations, but financial terms were only loosely discussed.

Giants General Manager Brian Sabean and owner Peter Magowan have said that they would evaluate Bonds as a contributing baseball player above other considerations.

• Omar Vizquel was awarded his 11th Gold Glove and his second consecutive since joining the Giants as a free agent. He led all major league shortstops and set a Giants franchise record with a .993 fielding percentage last season.

Vizquel needs two more to catch Ozzie Smith, who leads all shortstops with 13 Gold Gloves. Vizquel is the oldest shortstop to receive the honor.

"I'm 39 years old and competing against kids who are 25, 26 and at the top of their game,'' Vizquel said.

[traderumor]

This story in conjunction with contemplating the decision to bring Bonds back. Looks like giving 99 reasons why they will not be re-signing him being given to the press in advance to alert the fans. Then Barry will call Sabean a racist.

BTW, expecting Barry to conduct himself in a professional manner is about like asking a lion to become a vegetarian.

[Razor Shines]

"napping in the clubhouse during the ninth inning." That's awesome. I wish the media would stop making Bonds look bad.

[savafan]

Originally Posted by Razor Shines 1B

"napping in the clubhouse during the ninth inning." That's awesome. I wish the media would stop making Bonds look bad.

Yeah, he does it enough himself.

[Chip R]

Originally Posted by traderumor

This story in conjunction with contemplating the decision to bring Bonds back. Looks like giving 99 reasons why they will not be re-signing him being given to the press in advance to alert the fans. Then Barry will call Sabean a racist.

BTW, expecting Barry to conduct himself in a professional manner is about like asking a lion to become a vegetarian.

Nah, I still think the Giants will re-sign him. All this is is probably a way to lower his asking price and possibly to turn other potential suitors off. The Giants are the best fit for Bonds and vice versa.

[RedLegSuperStar]

Originally Posted by savafan

Yeah, he does it enough himself.

I'll 2nd that!

[RedLegSuperStar]

Think Jeff Kent is lobbying for Bonds to play for the Dodgers?

[MartyFan]

Listen...Barry is an older guy and if Nuxy can nap in the booth why can't Barry nap in the dugout during the 9th inning?

Just kidding..

[registerthis]

Originally Posted by MartyFan

Listen...Barry is an older guy and if Nuxy can nap in the booth why can't Barry nap in the dugout during the 9th inning?

Just kidding..

I say whoever signs him should just let him nap all the time, that way I perhaps won't have to deal with ESPN's onslaught/deluge of Bonds homer-watching and the inevitable countdown to 756.

And, you know, it's such a shame that we're reduced to making such snide remarks about a player who by all rights deserves inclusion among the game's all-time greats. But Barry's attitude tells me that he doesn't care about being liked, admired, or even respected, and I am by all means happy to oblige.

[savafan]

I still think Barry'd be better off in the AL as a DH.

[TeamBoone]

I can't picture Alou putting up with such crap. He should have benched him... or somehow punished him. There must be a way.

I hope no one signs him. I'd love to see this guy taught a lesson. But we all know that's not going to happen.

[Blimpie]

Originally Posted by Chip R

Nah, I still think the Giants will re-sign him. All this is is probably a way to lower his asking price and possibly to turn other potential suitors off. The Giants are the best fit for Bonds and vice versa.

Bingo. Beat me to it, Chip.

[Chip R]

Originally Posted by TeamBoone

I can't picture Alou putting up with such crap. He should have benched him... or somehow punished him. There must be a way.

I hope no one signs him. I'd love to see this guy taught a lesson. But we all know that's not going to happen.

You don't see too may superstar/manager confrontations anymore. A memorable one was Jim Leyland and the aforementioned Mr. Bonds in Spring Training back in the early 90s. Perhaps that's why Alou wasn't brought back although the Giants seem to do their fair share of coddling Barry as well. Fines to these guys mean nothing. Maybe Alou didn't confront Bonds because he didn't want to. Maybe he was afraid of the reaction he thought he'd get from him.

[11BarryLarkin11]

Alou didn't confront him because Bonds runs the show in San Francisco. No one in the front office ever stands up to Bonds. They have enabled Barry to do as he pleases and play by his own set of rules for years (bringing a recliner into the clubhouse, bringing his personal trainer (greg anderson) into the clubhouse, etc).

If Alou had tried to control the situation, then he likely wouldn't have had much support from the powers that be. Barry's played by his own rules his entire life and his unique abilities have time and again forced people to grant him special consideration rather than risk losing his baseball services. It even happened at ASU.

It's actually rather sad.

And, it's even sadder that the Giants still want him back. But, they'll bring him back for one reason. The Giants have increased ticket prices for 2007 and they'll need Barry around to ensure that the season ticket holders renew their tickets at the higher price. If they are a bad team and don't have Barry, then they'll have a much emptier ballpark and much smaller revenue stream.

Once again, cash is king.

[TeamSelig]

With his chase of the record, couldn't you punish him by benching him??

Just say he is 10-15 HRs away and starts acting up. Bench him until he changes his mind. Just don't release him. He'll have to sit out the rest of the year, and then who knows if his body will be able to continue the next year.

Just a thought