Who Deserves More Respect: Barry Bonds or Jose Canseco?

by user 71.195.215.8

In light of the latest steroid allegations directed at Barry Bonds, I've started to wonder which of the two following players mixed up with the steroid controversy deserves more respect; Barry Bonds or Jose Canseco. Even at first glance, that question is not an easy one to answer.

Jose was never a people person. I remember reading a story years ago about a bat-boy for a certain organization who took care of the visiting team. In his story he wrote about some of the nicest players in baseball, and some of the biggest a-holes in baseball. Guess which category Jose fell under? He was arrogant, he was abusive (personal life), and he was Juiced. But Canseco never really was in the limelight that Barry was in, mostly because Bonds loved to antagonize the media and Canseco never really cared about the media.

After retirement, Jose proceeded to sell every award that he had ever earned. His Rookie of the Year award, World Series ring, etc. He claimed that once he was out of the game, he wanted to cut all his ties to it. So he sold all his stuff, and wrote the most controversial baseball book to date. Unless you have been living under a rock for the past couple years, you know his book Juiced cited several players in baseball using steroids.

Since the book has been written, baseball has been covered in a cloud of controversy concerning the illegal drugs. Selig has stepped up his campaign against it, and the random drug testing and strict penalties have been developed in his battle against the usage of steroids. Canseco has an insatiable desire for money, but with that greed he has unknowingly started a chain of events that will hopefully bring the pride and respect back to the game. Despite being written for selfish reasons, his book might have been the best thing that has happened to the game since the start of the Wild Card era.

Barry Bonds has always been a selfish arrogant idiot. The latest book to come out cited the season that McGuire and Sosa chased down the home run record, as the season that sparked his interest in steroids. After bulking up by adding 30+ pounds of muscle, Bonds went on to break the single season home run record with 73.

He is now on the verge of passing Babe Ruth on the all time home run list, and is a season and a half away from passing Hank Aaron as the all time leader. The most impressive record in baseball history could be held by someone who has been knowingly prejudice, a proven cheater (based on the latest allegations in the newest book about him), a selfish player, and quite possibly more hated than anyone in sports history.

His interviews cry out for attention and pity (my mind wanders back to when he was hobbling around on crutches last season and blamed the media for ruining his personal life), and he has no problem talking down to anyone. Think about this; He has knowingly cheated, yet would not have any problem holding the most prestigious record in baseball, one that will surely not be broken for a long time (this will be the only thing that will cause me to root for Alex Rodriguez).

So maybe Jose did it because he knew he would never get into the hall of fame. He wrote the book to make his wallet fatter and his life style better. But at least he was honest. And ultimately, what Canseco did will be good for baseball. I personally can't think of anything that Barry Bonds has done good for baseball.

With that said, Jose you get my vote.

From: http://www.obstructedseats.net

Date
Sat 03/11/06, 12:33 am EST