My Dad, on Bonds: "He's Over The Hill, Right?"

My dad refutes the theory that Barry Bonds is washed up.

"Well, uh, not exactly.

"Here are stats I just downloaded.

"Despite not being in the Top 30 in batting average (which is what most
pundits look at), if you look at the "Moneyball" stats (i.e., the ones
Billy Beane focuses on) Bonds isn't performing too badly:

"Walks: Bonds' 124 leads the majors by a whopping 33% margin over Helton
at 93.

"On Base Percentage: Here, too, Bonds is in first place at .493, substantially above second place Ortiz at .434.

"Slugging: Bonds is only in fifth place at .588 (A-Rod is first at .637). Aww.

"But in OPS (a combination of the previous two stats): Bonds is first again, beating out A-Rod.

"OK, he doesn't play every day, but when he does he's still probably the biggest offensive force in the game. And, now that baseball is testing, don't you have to say that he's doing it naturally? (Not really, since they don't test for HGH--but still, it's a good argument to counter those who, incredibly, want to keep him out of the Hall of Fame.)"



Good points from Dad. Bonds is easily the Giants most effective offensive player, worth five wins over what a replacement-level left fielder would provide (AKA, ), or six wins over what Jason Ellison or Todd Linden have given their teams this year. Bonds is only 15th in VORP, but has the fewest plate appearances of all but Ryan Braun in the top 40. Clearly, he's still an effective player. Imagine if he could DH somewhere. He'd score 100 runs in 120 games if he played on the Angels.

Other notes: By VORP, Noah Lowry has been a more valuable offensive contributor than Omar Vizquel, Ray Durham, and Kevin Frandsen. Randy Winn is #109, worth almost two wins above replacement. Matt Cain is the second-most-valuable Giant by VORP, worth about 2/3 of Bonds's value. Lowry, Lincecum, and Zito all outrank Winn, and Kevin Correia checks in right behind him. Conclusion? The Giants are really sucky, but the pitchers are much less sucky than the hitters, particularly the super-sucky middle infield.

Some thoughts on 756

Before the game began, I had a feeling that this was going to be the night Barry broke the record. It wasn't so much a premonition as it was simple observation: Bonds was locked in at the plate in a way that reminded me of late 2001. Whether that has to do with how his legs feel, the quality of his vision, or just a new form of HGH, he was absolutely crushing the ball. Giants fans can recognize those stretches where, if Bonds isn't walked every at-bat, home runs are simply inevitable.



In his first at-bat, Bonds doubled with a scathing line drive to right. You could almost hear the second baseman wetting his pants as the ball went past him. In the third, he hit another line drive to center for a single. Then, the moment happened.

I hear that television didn't do the event justice at all, in terms of the sound and duration of the ovation. Bonds crushed one to right center, as fans with dollar signs in their eyes scrambled for the ball. Adding to the general chaos of the event, the ball bounced like a home run ball rarely does, going thirty feet toward right into a mob.

When I watched the initial celebration, I didn't think about the all-time record as much as I thought about how much I enjoyed Barry's fifteen years with the Giants. The ball was crushed to center, just like it was when Bonds hit a walkoff home run against Atlanta while his father was dying of cancer. The high first base camera got a great shot of the ball in flight, but the high first base camera angle only existed because of Barry. There was never a Will Clark ball-in-flight tracking shot.

As the celebration continues, I sent out a text message: "just a triple away from the cycle". Two minutes later, Duane Kuiper makes the same observation. My father and I like to yell, "Psychic announcer" when that happens, because we are dorks. I am happy for Bonds, but mostly, I am relieved that Willie Mays is not going to make a speech. Barry Bonds does make a speech, making a strong bid for his place in the pantheon of least intimidating, geekiest superstar athlete voices, alongside Mike Tyson, Tiger Woods, and Will Clark.

There is a typical AT&T Park crowd tonight. In the crowd shots accompanying Ray Durham's at-bat, roughly 85% of the crowd is talking on a cell phone. The ceremony lasted ten minutes, which feels shorter than the delay when Bonds hit #71 in 2001, in a game with a playoff berth at stake. The Nationals are the perfect opponent for a game like this, because all of their games are essentially meaningless. They should be grateful that the home run gives meaning to the careers of Mike Bacsik, Nook Logan, and Jesse Flores.

After the inning, Bonds trots out to left field for what might be the loudest walk-to-left-field ovation I've ever heard. In what may be a symbolic passing of the torch to one of the Giants' great hopes, Jonathan Sanchez technically replaces Bonds. Barry's exit, halfway through a close game, also symbolizes the entire season, where winning came secondary to Barry's pursuit of the record.

It's Italian Night at AT&T Park, making this evening doubly thrilling for outfield stands correspondent F.P. Santangelo. Mama mia, that's-a spicy meatball Barry hit! F.P. says that tonight was the coolest moment of his career in baseball. I think, "Really?" and then I remember F.P. spent the majority of his career in Montreal, where the most memorable events of the years usually involved elderly fans sneaking in a martini kit disguised as a set of binoculars, and poutine-eating contests. Really, F.P. is saying, "Tonight was cooler than that time Shawn Boskie got drunk and passed out in the bullpen, and Youppi pretended to dry-hump him."





Meanwhile, The Dugout once again kills it with their take on the home run, even if they hate Barry.

August 6th: Giants 3, Nationals 2

The Giants won an extra-inning game last night when the Nationals bullpen rendered their offense completely unable to avoid scoring, come the eleventh inning. The game-winning rally featured an impressive leadoff double by Ryan Klesko, an intentional walk, and new Giant Raj Davis (the 21st century Darren Lewis) getting hit by a pitch to load the bases with no one out. Omar Vizquel prolonged the suspense by grounding into a force before Randy Winn delivered the game-winning hit just past the glove of 250-pound second baseman Ronnie Belliard.

This game was emblematic of the Giants entire season. For ten innings, good pitching was wasted by an inept offense. Everyone sat around waiting for Bonds to hit a home run and lost interest when he left the game. Ray Durham left runners on base. And nothing typifies this year's knee-to-the-groin Giants season like the celebration after Winn's walkoff single, where Dave Roberts inadvertently drilled Winn in the lip with his batting helmet. Even in victory, there is injury, there are tears, and most of all, there is incompetence.

Congrats Barry

He did it, and it looked like was just soaking it up.



I had expected BLB to be a little surly following #755, but in his post game press conference on Thursday, he was at his finest. A little standoffish, but that's BLB being BLB. He was personable though, he knows all the media guys following him. He was winking at reporters.

I can't wait to see him pass Hank. The spectacle is not to be missed. I personally plan to watch it on television, where I watch most of BLB's important home runs (2001 excluded).

Following Barry

you'll have to excuse me, but i'm far too exhausted to use capital letters.

i've been following barry bonds for the last 4 days, for various television stations, and it's pretty intense. i think it's safe to say that barry is my favorite player... of all time. so it really is consuming my total being. i've been dreaming baseball for the first time in 15 or 20 years. Regardless of my mental health, some pretty crazy shit is going down.

1st and foremost, BLB is going to break one of baseball's biggies, arguably the biggiest.

2nd, selig's there, he's legitimized it, just tonight he was yammering about how many butts mlb was putting in the seats, we're talking record numbers. BLB is making mlb scads of money, he's the goose that laid the golden egg. hank's not there, but you just know he's tuned in.

3rd, BLB say's he wants back in next year. he said it friday night. i've been saying all year that i'm of the opinion that BLB wasn't coming back to mlb. and now, he says he want to be back with the giants next season. maybe it's just BLB being BLB. maybe he want's magowan to know who's in the drivers seat. who knows, like the babe and willie and cobb, baseball's elite is a strange brew.

4th, he's still doing the tour of so-cal. la is eating it up, it seems. 50-some-thousand every night. celebrities are out in force, and it will run on through the weekend, because BLB is going to do it at home. the planned "steroids awareness clinic" that was scheduled for thursday at chavez may be downplayed or canceled altogether, from what i've heard, we shall see.

BLB is going to do it soon. it's going to be a monumental moment, regardless of your opinion of him. in some ways he's like richard iii. most people hate him, but you can't turn away, his feats compel the public.

The Diary of Matt Morris

(Matt Morris was recently traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates. At Humm Bloggy, we've obtained a copy of Morris's diary from the past week. Check it out.)



July 25th: Decided to commit to the two-year membership for 24 Hour Fitness. There's just so many of them in the Bay Area, and the savings are unbeatable when you sign on for that long. Well worth it, in my mind. Hey, I'm going to to be here at least until the end of 2009, so why not?

July 26th: I want to tell you guys about a charitable effort I'm starting once we get back from the SoCal road trip on the 6th. It's called "Matt Morris's Winning Pitch". Here's how it works: For every home game for the rest of the year, I'm going to leave fifty tickets for disadvantaged kids. As long as I'm not scheduled to pitch, I'll give those kids a tour of the clubhouse and stadium before the game. It's the least I can do for this city.

July 27th: Finally closed escrow on the new house. They broke ground on the new pool and the indoor batting cages next week, so it's a relief to know this place is ours to stay. The Morris family is going to be in the Bay Area for a long, long time.

July 28th: Got this great t-shirt, and I can't to wear it everywhere. It's a #7 Steelers jersey, but on the back it says, "Toothlessberger". Isn't that hilarious? I liked it so much, I bought two, for insurance purposes. I'd be afraid to wear it in Pittsburgh, but luckily we've already done our road trip to that filthy backwater. If there's anything worse than the rivers in Pittsburgh, it's the hockey team, but only if you forget about the crappy Pirates and their limp-dicked owner, which are still better than the sloppy, toothless skanks that perch on barstools like vultures at every bar in the city. Just thinking about the women of Pittsburgh makes me shudder and reflexively grab for the hand sanitizer. Yup, Pittsburgh is a hellhole. Good thing I play in San Francisco!

July 29th: I didn't have the best start today, but I did my best, and that's really all you can do. I feel bad for letting the team down, who are seriously the best bunch of guys I've ever played with. I'm really looking forward to spending time with the guys on this road trip, really getting to know some of the young guys like Lincecum and Sanchez. This time I'm not going to make the same mistake I always do when I go to LA: bringing too much stuff! It's Southern California in the summertime, after all. I really just need a pair of shorts, my swimsuit, and a toothbrush and I'm set. San Diego is going to be the best!

July 30th: The non-refundable tickets for Hawaii are locked up! I finally resigned myself to the fact that we're not making the playoffs this year, so I figured, Hey Matt, why not take the family to Hawaii in October? If you buy this far in advance, you can get a pretty sweet deal, as long as you're willing to go non-refundable. It's such a sweet deal that I decided to buy for the whole staff. They're such a great bunch of guys, and hey, it's only money, right? I just love this team so much, it feels good to give something back to a team that has stuck with me whenever I've struggled.

I've got it set up so that we finish out the season in LA on Sunday, then I clean out my locker Monday morning. Monday afternoon, we board our flight to the islands. Just what I need to relax and unwind, before I start thinking about how we can get the Giants back into contention next season. This city deserves it.

July 31st: Signed a deal with Sports Illustrated to provide a first-person account of what it's like to be there when Barry breaks the record. It's great money, but honestly, I'd do it for free. I've been looking forward to that moment all year. Even during the losing streaks, I could focus on the great accomplishment Barry was nearing, and it would always pick me up.

August 1: Fuck.