Rays/MLB

NL: Poll in Calif. shows little faith in Bonds

By Wire services
Published April 16, 2006

SAN JOSE, Calif. - San Francisco is playing a three-game series in Los Angeles this weekend, but it's clear that Dodgers fans are not the only ones who see Barry Bonds as a drug cheat.

In a Field Poll released Saturday, 58 percent of California voters surveyed said they believe Bonds used steroids to enhance his performance.

In the first major poll to ask specifically about Bonds' drug use, even a majority of Giants fans surveyed - 55 percent - said they believe he took drugs.

The random poll of 917 registered voters, conducted April 3-10, has a sampling error of plus or minus 3.3 percentage points.

Meanwhile, commissioner Bud Selig withheld commenting on reports last week that a grand jury is investigating whether Bonds lied when he testified to a grand jury in the BALCO case in 2003 that he never knowingly used steroids.

IT'S JACKIE'S DAY: Fifty-nine years after Jackie Robinson broke baseball's color barrier, his widow was honored at Shea Stadium during "Jackie Robinson Day" throughout the major leagues.

The Chicago White Sox, Boston Red Sox and Minnesota Twins also honored Robinson with tributes before games.

Following a video tribute to the former Brooklyn Dodgers star that was shown on the scoreboard, Rachel Robinsonwalked to the pitcher's mound before the Mets hosted the Brewers.

In Los Angeles, Robinson's daughter, Sharon, participated in a ceremony to honor her father before the Giants played the Dodgers.

CARDINALS: St. Louis centerfielder Jim Edmonds, who has struggled offensively and defensively in the early season, was out of the lineup for Saturday's game against Cincinnati after receiving a cortisone shot for an aching right shoulder.

PIRATES: First baseman Sean Casey will be out of Pittsburgh's lineup for six to eight weeks with two fractures in his left lower back. Casey was injured during Friday night's game against the Cubs while he was stretching for a throw.

[Last modified April 16, 2006, 00:43:12]