I'm not sure if you can compare the two players. I mean really, how many candy bars named after Barry Bonds have been sold? Oh, the Baby Ruth candy bar was not named after Babe Ruth the baseball player even though most people think it was? Sorry, well, as P.T. Barnum said "There is a sucker born every minute". Geesh, P.Y. Barnum never actually said that either?
As you can see, I don't know much of anything about baseball. I just don't watch any sport that does not have cheeleaders.
For those of you that do know baseball I have two questions. One, do you think that players that have used steroids should have their records questioned? Two, should Pete Rose be allowed in the hall of fame?
Yes. Doped record breakers suck...Bonds, McGwire, Sosa etc
Yes if he was truly contrite but he's not. Rose sure played the game with gusto....I miss that a whole lot.
"should Pete Rose be allowed in the hall of fame?"
Yes. The man who thought a walk was just another chance to do a wind sprint.
Anybody using the juice should have a great big * next to their name in the record book. Sammy Sosa all but fell off the map after those Congressional hearings on steroids, while McGwire basically took the 5th when asked if he'd ever taken performance enhancers.
As for Barry Bonds, I'm sure it's just a coinky-dink that at the same time his numbers explode, his body morphs from that of a decent outfielder to some body-building freak with an oversized head. Remember, before 2000, when he started cranking out homers at an unbelievable pace, his numbers were trending downward, as would happen to any aging ballplayer. Suddenly, when he should be thinking about retirement, he suddenly explodes with close to 300 dingers over the last 6 years? Take away the juice, and Big Giant Head is at tops a 550 homer man.
Finally, as to the question of whether or not Pete Rose belongs in the Hall: based on his achievments on the field, yes. But betting on baseball was always a no-no, and he knew better.
The Cincinnati Reds now have cheerleaders. Maybe you should give baseball another shot.
The steroid question is difficult to answer. The game has changed a lot since the days of Ruth. Things have been altered to favor the hitter over the pitcher (mounds lowered, ballparks shrinking, balls being replaced more frequently). Additionally, there are performance enhancers. Say a pitcher from the olden times blew out his elbow. His career was over. Nowadays, the player will have Tommy Johns surgery and come back. Should his stats get an asterisk because it is modern medicine that allowed him to achieve that?
But I suppose for all my questions I would have to say no to steroids. The distinguishing feature is that they chemically alter the player's body to enable play beyond what is naturally possible. The problem is enforcement, and the temptation for aspiring players to do whatever they can to get the edge. No one would care about it if the hallowed records of Aaron weren't in danger of being broken by a man who is something of a freak of science. It's just so strange--Ruth is larger than life, a tragic hero and the original slugger; Aaron is the tortured model of consistency, a man who faced untold malice of racists while also bearing the weight of history. Bonds is an acerbic man with no charisma and no compelling backstory.
Rose should not be allowed into the Hall of Fame. As well as superior playing ability, it's also supposed to be for good ambassadors of the game. Rose disrespected the game by his antics and his lack of sincere repentence. He doesn't deserve it. Curt Flood on the other hand does deserve some sort of honor in Cooperstown.