U.S. Bonds

by BH

It has been reported that Barry Bonds will join the U.S. team in the World Baseball Classic in March. On ESPN.com, the story is coupled with a poll in which fans are asked "Do you want Barry Bonds to play for the U.S.?" At 11:00 pst, 75.5% of the 17,342 people who voted want Bonds to play.

I don't know what to make of this. We can probably all agree that outside of San Francisco, Bonds is generally disliked. So why would so many fans want to see Bonds represent the U.S.? Perhaps the public's negative feelings towards Bonds, his possible steroid use, and interaction with the media has been tempered. Maybe people realize this guy is a stud, and is the best baseball player they've ever seen. Perhaps they know that Bonds would add a great deal to the U.S. squad, and would make the team that much more difficult to beat. Maybe they hate the U.S. and want the rest of the world to hate the U.S. as well. I'm thinking that the result of the poll doesn't really tell us anything about how people really feel about Bonds the person. It tells us that Bonds the ballplayer is simply recognized as a great ballplayer.