BASEBALL!

[Kobi]

Originally Posted by AtLastHome

Oh, Bumgarner's mess with that twins game was a very unusual game for him. Poor guy. He is quite a pitcher all around. Even Lincecum went through a slump for awhile- all players do. I was glad to see Bumgarner get his stuff back- Isshhh... the Twins in that game hit everything he threw!! My jaw dropped to the floor because I have followed him (rookie last year and a big part of the Giants winning the WS).

Oh, Bonds was hard to take as a long time Giants fan. Yes, he disgraced the team and the game. Still is as far as I'm concerned. I do remember him early on when he first started out, but he became a primadonna fast and then the steroids. I guess it is kind of like die-hard Reds fans and dealing with Pete Rose- the team is not one player. I could smack Bonds and when he is at a home game, I wish they didn't even put him on the camera.

I have been watching the Giants since they arrived in SF in the 1950's (yup, I was 7 or 8 when they moved here from NY= my parents courted by going to see them back in new York before that). Been with them through thick and thin and Bonds and won't leave them due to one ass.

Probably the most rewarding thing about the team since Bonds left is that it is a team again, no stand out stars really. I love that about them even though there are a few players that I guess are top in the entire league- but there are those players on every team. It made my heart fly to see a bunch of scruffy guys out there last year working together, none of which was a super star and playing together. many are still on the team, but not all. But, the "style" of the ball club is very much post-Bonds and "lets not let the Bonds era take us down." There is a lot of sensitivity about him here and what he did and the pandering to his conceited, superficial self. I guess as an earlier player, the guy did have talent, but I remember him looking like he only needed to hit home runs and that was it. The guy moved like a snail in the out field and at times it looked like he felt like he didn't have to do his job other than hit balls and that he was the only reason the Giants ever won a game. The guy was good enough to be a great hitter actually without steroids- and look at all of the "star" players throughout the MLB that have been nailed for using them. Thinking of Mike McGwire, too. It is sad, but bonds is not the only one.
I never thought his defensive play was all that great.

I hate having my team associated with Bonds but have to remember other greats that were nothing like him like Willie Mays, Will Clark, Urebe, Willie McCovey, and Juan Marichal to name a few.

Gotta stick with my team, but there are some other players out there on other teams that I love to watch, too.

I never got to see Bonds play even on tv, but what you describe sounds very much like what we went thru here in Boston with Manny Ramirez. The press used to call it "Manny being Manny". First it seemed like a personality thing but then when he was fluffing in the outfield and on the bases and claiming he was hurt but refusing tests, it got very distracting in the clubhouse and brought down the morale of the team.

The players showed themselves to be a class act when they refused to address the problem publicly. But there was a very noticeable change on the field once he was traded to the Dodgers.

And then Manny tested positive for banned substances in LA and was suspended for much of the season. He was never the same player again. He was good in his day but was it talent or substances? Is there a way to distinguish between the two?

Seems a lot of old timers are having problems this year i.e. Dunne, Guerrero, Abreu, Posada.....is it age?

I love watching these new guys...Jemile Weeks of the Athletics is on my radar for my fantasy team. Very fast, good base stealing stats.

[AtLast]

Originally Posted by Kobi

I never got to see Bonds play even on tv, but what you describe sounds very much like what we went thru here in Boston with Manny Ramirez. The press used to call it "Manny being Manny". First it seemed like a personality thing but then when he was fluffing in the outfield and on the bases and claiming he was hurt but refusing tests, it got very distracting in the clubhouse and brought down the morale of the team.

The players showed themselves to be a class act when they refused to address the problem publicly. But there was a very noticeable change on the field once he was traded to the Dodgers.

And then Manny tested positive for banned substances in LA and was suspended for much of the season. He was never the same player again. He was good in his day but was it talent or substances? Is there a way to distinguish between the two?

Seems a lot of old timers are having problems this year i.e. Dunne, Guerrero, Abreu, Posada.....is it age?

I love watching these new guys...Jemile Weeks of the Athletics is on my radar for my fantasy team. Very fast, good base stealing stats.

You are right on. The "talent v. substances" question will always cloud any achievement players like Bonds have. Really sad when you think about all the players, old and new that are so good at playing and really work hard to play their best.

I so agree about some of the new guys out there. Weeks is going to be a good one I think, too. He not only has speed, he has hands! Seems comfortable out there and yes, he might be one of the greats in progress. I like it that he and one of my other favorite rookies, Crawford are both with Bay Area teams. I'll be able to watch them a lot.

Although, I'm a die-hard Giants fan, I miss Tony La Russa as the A's manager here. He is just a good human being. His support for his daughter and standing up about date rape a few years ago, plus his work for shelter animals puts him in my way good guy column.

The giant organization this season during Pride Month has also backed the Glenn Burke story of being a gay player (as well as POC). http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/201...rke/index.html. Kudos to the organization!

Hey- who are some of the other rookie year players that interest us? It would be fun to see who other posters are watching.