Barry Bonds is something of a forgotten man despite his on-field accomplishments these days, and it clearly bothers him.
Bonds is working as a special instructor at San Francisco Giants camp this spring, and admitted that he feels like baseball has given him a “death sentence” in light of his suspected PED usage.
“I feel like a ghost,” Bonds told Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic. “A ghost in a big empty house, just rattling around.
“A death sentence. That’s what they’ve given me. … My heart, it’s broken. Really broken.”
Bonds said his issue is less to do with not being elected to the Hall of Fame, but being made a pariah by every team but the Giants. There has been little recognition of Bonds, even outside of Hall of Fame consideration, from the sport itself.
“If they don’t want me, just say you don’t want me and be done with it,” Bonds said. “Just be done with it.”
Bonds seems to have made peace with his Hall of Fame exclusion, at least publicly. The same is clearly not true of his status in the game. You don’t hear anyone talk much about him as the all-time home run leader or in any context except in Hall of Fame voting. Clearly, that hurts him, but it’s unlikely to change due to his sketchy past.
