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Barry Bonds chases a homer record but no pitches. And he gets none to hit in Houston.
By JOHN ROMANO
© St. Petersburg Times, published October 3, 2001
HOUSTON -- The challenge was subtle. The rebuff was not.
In his best low-key manner, Barry Bonds tried to goad the Astros into challenging him Tuesday night. Hours before the game, he praised Houston pitchers for being aggressive and never ducking him in the past.
Astros starter Shane Reynolds didn't buy it.
And Bonds remains stuck on 69 home runs.
"He didn't challenge me," Bonds said after the game. "He didn't challenge me at all."
Pitching to Bonds is turning out to be a walk in the park.
Since reaching 69 homers on Saturday, Bonds has played two games and come to the plate nine times. In six of those plate appearances, he has either walked or been hit by a pitch.
He drew two walks, was hit by a pitch, singled and grounded out in five plate appearances in San Francisco's 4-1 victory Tuesday night. Bonds has five games remaining.
"It's not frustrating," Bonds said. "We won the game."
Bonds appears destined to break a record in Houston, though it may not be the one everyone is awaiting. While he is one away from Mark McGwire's standard of 70 home runs, he also is one away from Babe Ruth's 78-year-old record of 170 walks in a season.
"If I had a choice, I would take the home run record. You can keep the walk record," Bonds said. "It's hard to concentrate through that. You apply for a job to participate, not to observe."
Houston general manager Gerry Hunsicker listened as Bonds dabbled in amateur psychology before the game, tacitly implying the Astros would be macho enough to throw him strikes. Before Houston lost its fourth in a row to fall into a tie for first with St. Louis in the National League Central, Hunsicker wholeheartedly endorses the strategy of pitching around Bonds.
"We're out here trying to win every game," Hunsicker said. "Obviously, we're talking about the most dangerous hitter in the game this year. Whether he was going for the record or not, you can't put a hitter of this caliber in the position to beat you. I wouldn't rule out a situation where you intentionally walk him with the bases loaded."
As you might expect, the place was jammed Tuesday. Tens of thousands poured in with their expectations leading the way.
And when the climactic moment finally arrived, they broke out in scattered applause. Mixed with sporadic booing and partial indifference.
Bonds may be on his way to making history, but it seems America has not figured out whether to cheer, jeer or turn the channel.
The Enron Field record crowd of 43,548 was largely impassive most of the night. Bonds' first four at-bats drew only a smattering of applause and generated almost none of the buzz that accompanied McGwire's run in 1998. Not until Bonds faced Houston closer Billy Wagner in the ninth did the crowd come to its feet. Bonds grounded out on a 98-mph fastball.
What Bonds has done this summer is undeniably impressive, unquestionably historic, but not quite as captivating as one might imagine.
Perhaps it is his less-than-cuddly image. Maybe it is the somber mood of the nation. More than likely, it has to do with a once-in-a-lifetime feat showing up twice in the past few years.
Even Bonds seemed to suggest his quest was not in the same category as McGwire's 70 home runs.
"It's Mark's record," Bonds said. "I have a lot of respect for that. I will always be grateful and say Mark was the table-setter for this. Whatever happens, if it does get broken, it moves on to the next guy. But Mark is the man. Mark was the first one to ever do it and he deserves that respect."
McGwire, it seems, was chasing history. Bonds is following it. McGwire was Neil Armstrong stepping on the moon. Bonds is ... whoever it was that followed Armstrong out of Apollo 11.
When McGwire was approaching the record held by Roger Maris, it had been 37 years since a player hit 60 home runs. There have since been six 60-homer seasons in the past four years, making it about as rare as a no-hitter.
The irony is that Bonds, by far, is a more accomplished player than McGwire. He is a Gold Glove outfielder, a base-stealing threat and has consistently hit in the .300 range.
"It's nearly impossible to pitch to him," Astros manager Larry Dierker said. "He has no real weaknesses. You can try changing speeds and moving the ball around, but you can't throw him the same pitch twice."
Long after the game had ended and the bleachers had cleared, the scoreboard came to life Tuesday night.
Images of Bonds began to appear. Bonds smiling. Bonds hitting home runs. Bonds' face with the number 71 superimposed on it.
All in all, it was a nice pitch.
Perhaps the best Bonds will see here.