0 comments Quick Commentary

From time to time I will do a quick commentary on something that is going on in the sports world and it is basically my time to editorialize (to who? I have no idea, has anyone ever read this?). That being said:

I believe the New York Yankees should sign Barry Bonds. I have spoken with several Yankee and non-Yankee fans and they actually agree with me. That is new for me. What does Bonds bring to the table negative?

1. Bad attitude- whether you believe it or not, he does have one.

2. Some baggage- drugs, previously mentioned attitude, a need to alientate others, he thinks he is bigger than the team...

3. Declining skill set- he could not play in the OF anymore...not consistently. He also does not hit HR's as often as he used to.

4. Media coverage- it is New York

Here are the positives though:

1. Pure protection for A Rod- you spend a lot of money on A Rod and you expect him to deliver. If Bonds was hitting in front of him, the pressure is on. Pitchers still pitch carefully to Bonds and that can only help A Rod. Bonds should be a DH, this is a given and putting him in front of A Rod would be fun to watch.

2. Bonds is still a good hitter- Bonds had a .480 OBP last year. Granted, that was with 132 walks so the pitchers could pitch to Pedro Feliz, but Bonds still had 28 HR in those 340 AB's and hit .276. I am gambling the walks would decrease and the HR would increase if A Rod is behind him.

3. New York City- if any city can handle Barry Bonds, it is the media capital of the world, and Jason Giambi survived a steriod scandal there and lived to tell about it. My point is, if you produce they don't care. They also can handle special arrangements for stars (see Roger Clemens) and no one has an ego over it.

4. Advantage New York over Boston- now that Curt Schilling is blogging full time until the All Star Break, New York has a unique chance to be on semi-equal footing against the Red Sox in the pitching category for a couple months. The Yankees need quality starts but having Bonds bat 3rd and DH will look just as good against the Red Sox head to head. I don't think the Yankees need hitting either, but there are no pitchers in the free agent market that can cause matchup problems like adding a hitter of Bonds caliber can.

This is just my opinion and Bonds would never go to New York at this point in his career but I think it makes a whole heck of a lot of sense. Remember, Bonds played in a ballpark that was actually quite large and managed to hit a couple HR's there and produce pretty well. I can only imagine him at Yankee Stadium, taking a shot at that RF fence.

I hate the Yankees, but this seems to make a lot of sense to me.