From the Dusty Archives
I realize that I haven’t drawn the requisite asterisk cartoon about Barry Bonds, as I think there’s real stuff going on in the world that actually warrants our attention, but a look back in my file to 2004 shows that I’m not completely indifferent to the exciting world of baseball cheating:
This entry was posted on Thursday, August 9th, 2007 at 11:17 am by Matt Davies.
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(12 votes, average: 3.42 out of 5)
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It was a big deal when Henry Aaron broke Babe Ruth's record.
Nobody seems to care about Barry Bonds breaking Aarons record Which just goes to show you people don't really
recognize this at all because of steroids which is the way
it should be.
Anywhere Bonds and the Giants go, stadium's sell out, which would suggest that while people may suspect he cheated, they do see the significance of what he's done, and want to be a part of it. Matt's cartoon captures the apathetic response baseball purists have regarding Bonds and his home runs. It's an interesting contrast with the free-for-all that happened in the bleachers when the record-breaking homer landed amongst the fans in San Francisco. That kid from Queens got bloodied diving to grab the ball amongst dozens of frenzied fans, and the $10 souvenir is expected to fetch upwards of $500,000 at auction. If nobody cared, it's be worth $10.
Really is unfortunate that the most revered record in sports was broken under suspect circumstances. Hank Aaron is such a wonderful character, and he's been surpassed by a sullen, chemically-altered grouch.
To quote Mike Myers:
"His head's like Sputnik. Spherical, but quite pointy in parts … Tonight he'll cry himself to sleep… on his huge pilla! ... Heid! Paper! Now! Move that melon of yours and get the paper if you can, hauling that gargantuan cranium about!"
They are frenzied because of the money. I don't think they
really care about the record. not like in 1974 anyway.
That was my point – that frenzy was an interesting contrast to Matt's cartoon, which accurately portrayed the disgust many fans feel in regards to steroid-tainted achievements.
But all those people in all those stadiums (their road games in San Diego and LA were sold out before the Giants got back to San Fran) weren't there to catch the home run ball and cash in. They were there to witness history, tainted or not. Count the flashbulbs in the replays. People care.