At the pro level, if it isn’t against the rules, it isn’t cheating.
I understand getting panties bunched. Talk to me about the DH or Rose getting in the Hall…
I think its entirely possible to see Bonds as a great player that had a great career that was boosted a little bit at the end and just slapping him on the wrist a little bit
He had 3 MVPs and 5 additional top 10 MVP finishes before it is generally accepted that he started using (1999 season). Removing his “assisted” seasons does not necessarily remove him from top 10 (or better) discussion.
“Legend” status is not handed out like Willy Wonka Golden Tickets, though. They are earned through accomplishment.
So, if Bonds is number 2, then this list is legitimate? If Bonds is number 11, this list is legitimate? But if he is anywhere between 3 and 10, then it is illegitimate?
Ever looked at Hank Aaron’s numbers in his late 30s/early 40s?
One other thing to keep in mind is that Mays missed some prime years due to the Korean War. Bonds or Ruth didn’t lose any time like that.
If it is allowable at the time and both pitchers and hitters were using it commonly, did it really give him that much of an edge? I saw a report a number of years ago that calculated the average distance a hitter would get on home runs and it wasn’t much. It basically gave an edge mostly to warning track guys to get cheap home runs. It really didn’t give more than 5 or 10 feet in distance.
But many were doing it too, and it wasn't against the rules. It wasn't cheating per se it was keeping up with the league. Pitchers did it too.
A year and a half but yes. Had a very good shot at passing Ruth's HR total if he had played then
You're losing sight of the big picture which is at the level of all time greats there's no way to definitively rank these people. They are all top tier and there are too many variables. Some put the steroid variable higher than others, but it doesn't mean they say 'steroids = not on the list", to them it's "steroids = reducing their ranking", just like you might reduce a ranking for a player not facing black players, or for playing well past being good enough, or not being a good base runner, or whatever.
So if this was Top 25, he would still need to be completely off the list if not Top 2?
Mays. Amphetamines. Juiced his entire career. Stop being a hypocrite.
Because he would not have only been asked questions about Bonds and some of the non-Bonds questions would most certainly have incriminated him. But, the sports writers hated Bonds so they chose to print the story in a way to make Bonds look as guilty as possible.
