Fred's Ramblings

For any Dodgers fan, they are in their rightful place atop the Western Division of the National League. It has taken a lot of work and some of the players playing up to their potential, but they have finally reached the top of the division. The big task now is to maintain this level of playing for the rest of the season so that they can enter the playoffs in a good position to hopefully again reach the World Series.

As noted, the Arizona Diamondbacks are tied for second place with the Giants and to count them out would be a mistake as they have shown that they have the mettle to make this race an interesting one. Colorado is in its usual place at the bottom of the heap, but I think everyone is surprised at the San Diego Padres sitting in 4th place. The Dodgers have a precarious 2 game lead at the moment that can change at the drop of a hat, and it is quite possible that the Padres will make themselves heard before the season is over. This should be an interesting race going forward.

Back in June when the weather around here was unseasonably cool, we knew that the “Dog Days Of Summer” were coming and lo and behold, they have arrived. According to Farmer’s Almanac, the dog days of summer usually occur between July 3rd and August 11th. They’re usually the hottest and most unbearable days of the season.
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It seems that every year about this time, the discussion of whether or not Barry Bonds should be in the Hall of Fame is brought up. Bonds’ talent and accomplishments are unquestionably Hall Of Fame worthy. He passed both Babe Ruth and Hank Aaron, ultimately hitting the most home runs of all time with a total of 762. The subject of PEDs, however, has kept him out of Cooperstown. MLB Hall Of Fame voters haven’t forgiven the former San Francisco Giants and Pittsburgh Pirates superstar. Bonds’ absence from the Hall Of Fame has led to various opinions on the matter. Some believe he should remain out of Cooperstown because of the PED issue, while others are willing to look past his troubled history and think he should be a member.

While the subject is up for debate, my opinion is that he should not be a member of the Hall Of Fame. Yes, he is the alleged leader in the home runs category, but who is to say that he would have achieved that spot without the use of PED’s. The PED issue taints all of his statistics and the fact he cheated to get those stats should keep him out of the HOF.

Electing Bonds to the HOF would create a domino effect. Other players linked to PEDs, such as Roger Clemens, Alex Rodriguez, Rafael Palmiero and plenty of others, would likely join Bonds in Cooperstown. And therein lies the problem. If one player linked to PEDs is elected, then everyone else involved in PED’s will likely get in. Pete Rose has been kept out of the Hall Of Fame because of his gambling, but he earned his Hall Of Fame statistics without having to cheat. If Rose is not allowed in, then for sure, none of the PED players should be allowed in.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion and I just provided mine. I would be interested in hearing other’s views.

I belong to a Facebook group that deals with my Air Force days and recently there was a post that asked who had been stationed at Aviano AB in Italy. That brought back a memory…After graduating from my Air Force tech school, I was given a set of orders that would have sent me to Aviano AB. The air base is a little northeast of Venice which placed it within a 4 hour drive from where I was born.

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