Larry Brown Sports

In a heartwarming yet poignant moment Friday afternoon before the Giants’ home opener, Bryan Stow made an appearance with his mother, Ann, via a video message before Stow’s 13-year-old son, Tyler, threw the first pitch. Stow, who appeared emotionless in his wheelchair as his mother read a statement, ended the video by extending his arm to “virtually” hand the ball to Tyler and saying, “Tyler, here’s your ball. Good luck, son.” The exchange received a standing ovation from the sold-out crowd.

It’s been over a year since Stow was brutally beaten at Dodger Stadium on opening day last season. He suffered a traumatic brain injury from the assault and will need assistance for the rest of his life. Friday reportedly was Stow’s first time appearing and speaking to the public. The Giants had hoped Stow, who now lives in a rehab facility, would be able to make an in-person appearance at AT&T Park for the pre-game festivities, but he was unable to do so. “We couldn’t be more excited for the person filling in for Bryan,” Ann Stow said about her grandson Tyler.

Video via CSN Bay Area

Say what you will about Barry Bonds and his allegedly steroid-ridden career, but the man is working hard to restore his image.  It’s one thing to speak out against a horrible act like the Bryan Stow beating.  Any athlete or celebrity with a microphone in their face could talk about how horrible it is for a group of fans to beat another fan for supporting a rival team, but Bonds has remained committed to helping the Stow family.  After visiting Stow in the hospital and giving his children a scholarship to attend college, even the biggest Bonds haters would be stretching to say everything he has done is an act.

In what must be about step five of the Barry Bonds Image Restoration Project, Bonds recently appeared in a public service announcement with the Stow family.  Whether he has been completely sincere or not, Barry has certainly done a great deal to raise money for a tragic cause.  Check out the PSA, as shared by Sportress of Blogitude:

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It’s been over two and a half weeks since Giovanni Ramirez was taken into custody as the primary suspect in the Bryan Stow assault case, but he has yet to be charged for the crime. He’s been held in custody for allegedly violating his parole while police continue to investigate. Now, NBC LA reports about a piece of evidence that would likely make it easy to track down the suspect.

According to NBC LA, a white blood-stained Dodgers jersey was taken to a dry cleaner who alerted the police. The DNA on the jersey reportedly matched Bryan Stow’s. You would think that would lead to an arrest of the suspect, but a police source reportedly told NBC LA the jersey does not belong to Ramirez. Additionally, they report that “police have delayed asking the district attorney to file against Ramirez as part of a strategy to pressure him to reveal information about two other suspects still at large.”

Police have kept silent about evidence in the case and were reluctant to reveal much information regarding the jersey. Even if the jersey does not belong to Ramirez, it’s quite possible it belongs to the getaway driver, a woman who was wearing an Andre Ethier jersey according to all reports. One of the suspects in the case was wearing a Dodgers jersey and hat according to reports.

The lawyers for Giovanni Ramirez have said all along that he has a strong alibi, but LA Police Chief Charlie Beck said he was confident they had the right person. Maybe there has been little reported progress because they are trying to obtain information on the other two suspects. It’s hard to imagine they would go public with the news and have the wrong guy, but that is a possibility.

Here is a mug shot of Giovanni Ramirez, the man currently in custody.

Barry Bonds was known as a surly, rude, and irritable player during his career. It was so bad that even his own teammates supposedly wanted him to get hit by pitches. But Bonds seems to have changed since he’s retired. We’ve heard many media members and people say that he’s mellowed out and become a nicer guy, and that seemed to be confirmed when we heard he went to visit Bryan Stow’s family in the hospital shortly after the beating.

Now we’re learning another detail that makes Bonds look even better.

In an interview with NBC LA, the lawyer representing the Stow family in their suit against the Dodgers says the family plans to give back donations if they win the suit. Attorney Thomas Girardi also revealed that the family plans on keeping one gift: a college scholarship donated by Barry Bonds for Stow’s children. Girardi told LBS he wasn’t sure how much the donation involved, but that he knows Bonds set up the scholarships for the children.

Stow is a single father of two children and Bonds already reportedly gave them a signed glove and bat in the hospital. Now he’s paying for them to attend college? He sure has changed, and he is making some great use of his time while he awaits a hearing in his perjury trial. Well done Barry, very well done.

Thanks to Josina Anderson for the tip

On Sunday, Giovanni Ramirez was arrested and booked on suspicion of assaulting Bryan Stow at Dodger Stadium on Opening Day. He was booked for assault with a deadly weapon and is being held on $1 million bail. His mug shot was not released at the time of his booking, but we present it to you courtesy of our friend A Mack and KFI which has since taken down the photo.

I have to say that his actual mug shot looks incredibly similar to the police artist sketch. And just like the LA Times reported, he has an incredible amount of tattoos on his neck which were added to try and cover up previous tattoos that may have been able to use to identify him. Luckily it didn’t work.

The LAPD has released the name of the suspect booked in connection with the assault on Giants fan Bryan Stow at Dodger Stadium on Opening Day, and it is 31-year-old Giovanni Ramirez. Ramirez was booked for assault with a deadly weapon and is being held on $1 million bail.

According to the LA Times, Ramirez was convicted of attempted robbery in 1998, robbery in 1999, and firing a weapon in a public place in 2005.

Amazingly enough, the most helpful tip in the investigation came from a parole officer. Ramirez apparently had a meeting with his officer shortly after the attack and the officer noticed he resembled one of the men from the sketch.

Ramirez was arrested Sunday when detectives and the SWAT team raided an apartment building in East Hollywood. Of the two men in the sketch, he is the one on the left and believed to be the primary aggressor in the attack. When he was booked, he was described as being 5’11″ 200 pounds with black hair and brown eyes.

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We’ve done so much Barry Bonds bashing over the years here at LBS, it’s only fair to point out when the seemingly heartless man actually does something positive. NBC Bay Area reported Wednesday afternoon that Bonds actually visited Bryan Stow in the hospital. Stow you’ll recall is the Giants fan who was attacked by savage Dodger fans on Opening Day and ended up in a medically-induced coma because of his injuries.

The spokeswoman for Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center, Rosa Saca, said Bonds came to the hospital last Friday and met with the family. NBC Bay Area reported that “Bonds also spent an hour in Stow’s room and left a signed baseball bat for Stow’s children.”

We had heard that Bonds has mellowed since retiring and actually become a much nicer person. This report would confirm that, and it certainly is a commendable gesture by Bonds. And while we’re on the subject of Barry’s compassion, he actually wasn’t that rude on his voicemails to Kimberly Bell as the courts would have you believe. Maybe he’s not so bad these days after all.