That was the question posed by William Rhoden in the weekend's New York Times: Why can't Barry Bonds get on a single Major League Baseball team -- dude can't even get a call back -- while other former steroid user Jason Giambi nearly made it in to the All-Star Game thanks to the fan vote? Apparently Barry Bonds is black. Could that possibly maybe have something to do with it? Maybe! But that's not what Rhoden says: Giambi on at least three occasions all but admitted he cheated, that he used performance-enhancing drugs to get an edge. That admission, coupled with cultivated personal charm, has been enough to earn Giambi -- a mediocre power hitter -- a Major League Baseball pass. While Giambi has become a media darling, Bonds, the greatest home run hitter of our time, can't get a job.That seems dead on to me. (Besides the part about Giambi being mediocre; he's actually 44 percent better than mediocre.) Barry Bonds' entire persona could not be more different from Jason Giambi's -- Giambi is the gritty team player, the funny mustache-wearer, the counterculture slugger with the big tattoos. Bonds is the stubborn, surly uber-individualist who had the "audacity" to set a record despite steroid suspicions. Giambi had the good sense to admit to "that stuff," and the intelligence to realize that being on the field was the most important thing. Bonds admits nothing; he might go to jail because of it.
Would Bonds ever attempt a PR coup? Could he? Is there a single GM with the balls to take a chance on Barry Bonds? There are many reasons the answer to all of the above is no, and Bonds can blame himself for a few, though not all, of them.
