Barry Bonds’ evolution from prodigy to perjury

Everyone who has ever picked up a baseball bat has had one goal in mind – hit a home run.

And like everyone else, Barry Bonds started his baseball career with the same ambition, but the similarities between  Bonds and every other ballplayer ends there.

Bonds was born into baseball, picked and prodded by family from the moment he  wore a glove, which planted the seeds for Barry to be a phenomenon.

His father, Bobby Bonds, played in the major leagues for 14 years and was a three-time All-Star. Bonds’ godfather, Willie Mays, was a two-time MVP. And Bonds’ distant cousin, Reggie Jackson, was the best hitting and most polarizing player of the 1970s.

But Bonds felt disconnected with his father from an early age. Bobby Bonds went on the road, did not attend his son’s games and drank more than he ate when he was home.

A youth star, Bonds played baseball in his father’s footsteps without his presence and developed an introverted, volatile personality at an early age.

The Bonds father and son combo eventually resolved their relationship as Barry played high school ball. It was at this time Barry had to make decisions about whether or not to go pro out of high school.

Bobby soon became Barry’s best friend, telling him to continue schooling.

It was the first time Bobby existed in Barry’s personal life, and the two became inseparable.

On one hand, Bobby’s presence helped Barry mature on the baseball field. His father’s guidance gave Barry initiative to continue striving for greatness, but it also dealt Bonds another blow to his character.

Bobby wanted his son to be abrasive and unapologetic, and Barry listened, leading to who he became as a pro.

On his first day during spring training Bonds barged into the Pirates’ clubhouse and into his manager’s office.

Then-manager Ed Ott scolded Bonds to, “get your fucking ass out that door, and don’t come back in unless you knock.”

From day one, Barry alienated himself from his coaches and teammates.

But as aggravating as he could be, Bonds dazzled the baseball world with his compact swing, swift speed and gaudy glove.

A lanky 6’1’’ and 185 pounds, Barry won two MVPs as a Pirate and joined the 30-30 club twice. In seven years in Pittsburgh Bonds amassed his first 176 home-runs and 251 stolen bases, making him the most dynamic and dominant player in baseball.

But Bonds’ mentality on the field shifted after his last year in Pittsburgh.

He wanted to hit more home runs, and his passion to drive more balls out of the park began innocently enough.

Bonds’ annual home-run totals never dropped below 33 for the next 12 years. His stolen base totals gradually dropped. And his strikeout totals soared, because he swung for the fence every time a ball crossed the plate.

Then, in his tenth year in San Francisco, something was noticeably different about Barry Bonds.

He was no longer a lanky kid. He, in fact, seemed to be a mammoth.

Bonds gradually gained weight between his rookie year in 1987 and 2000, but in 2001 he was suddenly 20 pounds heavier.

He was 228 pounds of pure muscle.

2001 is the year Barry officially put his name next to legends and in baseball folklore and hit an astounding 73 home-runs to capture the single-season home-run title.

Barry reached the pinnacle of his career, but his fortunes tumbled in the coming seasons.

In 2003, Bonds suffered a nasty separation from long-time adulteress Kimberly Bell.

In the same year he tested positive for performance enhancing drugs, PEDs, which was not revealed for years. Greg Anderson, his personal trainer since 2000, was caught in a nationwide steroid scandal. His father passed away. And Congressman George Mitchell commenced an investigation into baseball’s alleged rampant drug use.

Eight years later, Bonds has also eclipsed the all-time home-run record with 762 bombs. Mitchell outed Bonds as one of the premier PED users in baseball. Anderson was just recently released from jail for refusing to testify against Bonds. And Bell has stated Bonds admitted steroid use to her in confidence.

Bonds, now, is retired, on trial for perjury for allegedly lying about using steroids and in the final at-bat of his baseball career.

After a brief time in court the prosecution and defense rest while the jury debates amongst each other in what is now their fourth day of deliberation.

Their decision to unanimously vote guilty or not guilty on four charges of perjury is the biggest decision concerning baseball since the Black Sox scandal of 1919.

If convicted Bonds will face jail time, and baseball will ban him like the Black Sox and Pete Rose before him.

And to think, this all started when Barry was a child hoping his tee-ball bat would hit him a home-run.