[Lefty Noob]

Barry Bonds is currently just 7 home runs behind Babe Ruth and 48 away from breaking Hank Aaron's all-time record. However, he's coming off a season in which he played just 14 games, and he certainly isn't getting any younger. Will he break the record this year, next year, or not at all?

[Wizard of Os]

Lefty,

I'd like to vote for the fourth option, "I'm rooting against him and his steroid-inflated numbers."

Didn't he recently say that he was hanging it up after the season, record or no? Maybe Washington can sign him for $500,000...

[EmpireWF]

I predict Bonds will pass Babe Ruth but will retire as #2 on the all-time HR list. My reasoning: Bonds has said in the past that he just wants to hit more than Babe Ruth (racial reasons? who knows). Then with the steroid problem, I believe both MLB and Bonds know the whole HR record will be tainted somewhat if Bonds is the leader all-time.

By being, #2, Henry Aaron is still recognized as the best ever but Bonds can tell himself, he's better than the Babe.

[Wizard of Os]

Welllllllllllllllllllllll...okay, maybe he won't go out like a too-old chump (like, ahem, Hank Aaron of the Milwaukee Brewers), but i will fight the notion that he is even comparable to Babe to the death.

[Mid-depth_Reporter]

I won't be cheering for him to break the record, as well as many other people - mainly the not-infatuated-with-Barry-Bonds crowd which includes just about anyone that doesn't cheer for the San Francisco Giants.

However, given that, he probably will, sparking a debate, hatred and media chaos for however long it takes Alex Rodriguez to go and break it.

And, as for Barry Bonds speaking of retirement, he's just trying to get the media attention back on himself. This past year has been horrible for him because of the steroid "allegations" and the fact that he was injured the whole year. Barry just wants everyone to talk about him and bring out the good news.

He's really just looking to be loved.

[Lefty Noob]

Did you guys see the video of him dressed up as Paula Abdul? Disturbing.

[candlejack]

Barry will become the all-time #2 HR hitter this year and that will be all. I would have liked to seen him break Hank AAron's record.

[Gotham Dark Knight]

Originally Posted by Lefty Noob

Barry Bonds is currently just 7 home runs behind Babe Ruth and 48 away from breaking Hank Aaron's all-time record. However, he's coming off a season in which he played just 14 games, and he certainly isn't getting any younger. Will he break the record this year, next year, or not at all?

Lefty, he will break it only if and when Pundit comes back from the Eternal Abyss he went to stare at and tunes in to Barry's reality show...only then...with Pundit watching will Barry will himself to do it!...That's my take on it..and I am sticking to it!

[legend]

He will break it, unfortunately. But nobody has to acknowledge it. I discount everything done by McGuire, Sosa, Palmeiro, and Bonds. The only accomplishments of this nature by a player of today's era I ackowledge is GriffeyJr. Poor Roger Maris. He was almost driven to a nervous breakdown, and given an asterisk, because he played 8 more games than Ruth. Compare that to what these guys today have done.

[wvuauthor]

I agree that Bonds will break the record, even though I am cheering against him hard. I just don't like what he stands for and the way he acts. I cannot see Bonds retiring before he gets his hands on that record. His ego won't let him.

[GigEmAgs]

I think he'll break the record -- but what will it matter? Recent revelations have shown he was taking all kinds of steroids at the time. He was cheating. At some point, MLB is going to have to sit down and decide what counts and what doesn't. Bonds is going to need an asterisk, a footnote, and ten kinds of provisos when he gets into the record books.

With all this stuff going on, it's hard to get excited when someone breaks a record at all. So what? Someone will beat them soon enough, even if it takes a mountain of pills.

[Lefty Noob]

You know, in spite of everything (the book, the pending lawsuit over it, all of the allegations and stuff), Barry's put together a pretty nice spring thus far. He's 9-for-13 with four dingers. He's looking sharp, got to give him credit for that. Makes me start to second guess my vote and think that he might be able to break the HR record this season.

[daviohead]

Before "Game of Shadows" I would have said no, but Barry is like some kind of ghoulish monster that feeds on bad feelings. Things like distrust, jelousy, anger, and disdain actually fuel him to newer heights. With an entire country full of hate to keep him going he could have a huge season.
In fact, you could argue that last year's wasted season was more a result of the respect Barry was receiving than an actual physical meltdown. So many people were talking about what a great hitter he was that he was running out of things to fight against.
Now he seems to be feasting on this nationwide contempt, and he may be in line for another huge season. I can see him breaking the record some time in September, at Dodger Stadium, growing stronger with every boo.
I'm surprised he doesn't light up and float in the air when an entire stadium boos him, like Chistopher Lambert in Highlander.

[Lefty Noob]

I guess there's a slight chance he might start the season on the DL, due to elbow and knee problems. However, he did tell the AP yesterday (among other things), "[The elbow is] fine. The knee is good. ... I've just got to get my strength back. My legs are fine. I just took a couple weeks off from training."

By the way, in that interview he also said that his life was in shambles, that he's just trying to say sane, and even joked about jumping off the Empire State Building and committing suicide. Barry, if nothing else, is never dull, is he?

[Lefty Noob]

Bonds hit #712 today, two away from tying Babe Ruth and three from claiming sole possession of second place. According to the Associated Press, "Bonds sent a full-count, 96 mph fastball from Scott Linebrink over the center-field wall for a solo shot that traveled an estimated 440 feet. Linebrink became the 419th pitcher to surrender a home run to Bonds."

Second place is all but assured. Now that the season's underway, has anyone changed their opinion of whether or not Bonds will be able to break Aaron's record?