Fred's Ramblings

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.

Unless you have been living under a rock or aren’t a sports fan, you know that Juan Soto is the hottest commodity in Major League Baseball. With the trade deadline coming up on August 2nd, there are at least 4 teams that are vying to trade for him.

This 24 year old phenom has the baseball world in the palm of his hand. What makes him an attractive trade option is that his current contract does not expire until after the 2024 season. So the team that gets him has two and a half years of his playing ability just by taking on his current contract of 17 million dollars per year, which is a steal. His new mega contract can then be negotiated either with the team that trades for him this year or he can go back out on the open market and put his contract out to bid. If I were Juan Soto, I would not sign a new contract now but wait until after the 2024 season. Assuming he plays up to the standard he has been playing, that new contract at the end of the 2024 season should make him the highest paid player to have ever played Major League Baseball. Then again, if I were Juan Soto, I would not be here writing on this blog about Juan Soto.

The 2022 NFL season is just around the corner and I for one can’t wait for it to start. Not because I run a football pool, but because there seems to be more excitement in football than there is in baseball.
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The Major League All Star game is set to be played next Tuesday. At this point, I wonder why they even bother as viewership is less and less each year. I’m assuming that MLB is pulling in a bundle from the TV rights. Let’s face it…the All Star game has become a popularity contest instead of a game that rewards the player that is having an All Star year. [Read more…]