The first year of life in the new ballpark for the Nationals could not be going any worse; their "big" off season signing Paul Lo Duca was caught in the middle of the steroid scandal, half the team has been injured at one point, the attendance has not gone up much since the opening of Nationals Park (currently 16th in the league) , their record is the worst in baseball, and the TV ratings are the worst in the bigs. So you can say the Nationals are not really having that break-out year the Lerners expected. It does take time to build a winner and a fan base. But last in the bigs is a huge step in the wrong direction.
Barry Bonds, has been chilling in California trying to get a deal all season. His agent Jeff Borris recently said :
Barry Bonds, has been chilling in California trying to get a deal all season. His agent Jeff Borris recently said :
“I am not talking to any club about Barry Bonds, because they all made it very
clear to me they are not interested in him. Every club.”
His salary requests are out of this world and he probably wants to play for a contender. The media frenzy that would follow Bonds and all his steroid connections that go with it, are too much for a team to bare. He is a liability in the outfield and not reliable enough to only be a designated hitter. But what I aim to give, are reasons why both the Nationals and Bonds would be helped greatly by the situation.
More after the jump
First up the Nationals:
They would get a legitimate power threat to knock runners in, having Christian Guzman batting .313 with 126 hits and only 54 runs scored is disgusting. The Nationals biggest HR threat may get 20 HRs this season, Bonds would be a major addition in the category.
Opposing fans love to go to the game and boo Barry, getting more fans in the nice new ballpark is the idea, right? Maybe the fans that come to boo Barry would realize the park is worth coming to and keep coming back.
Barry Bonds works hard, he may have cheated but you don't become one of the best players of all-time through roids and a good gene pool. If the younger guys see what it takes to be a HOF caliber player, maybe they will work that much harder and pick up some of his good habits.
Bonds gets national attention, the more Bonds is on TV the higher the ratings.
It would only be a half season thing, if he doesn't play well or is a distraction your not burning cash farther down the line
Those are a couple reasons that the Nationals would benefit from the signing of Barry Bonds.
And Barry's
Barrys benefits are more short-term but could help him in the long run
He could show that's it not all about the money, by taking a pay cut to play in the nation's capitol
He could work on his relationship with reporters and maybe get a better shot at getting in the HOF. DC is known for its spin doctors.
Barry could pull farther away from Hank Aaron's mark, making him a must vote for the HOF
He could hang out with Meat Hook, who wouldn't want to hang with this guy?
The Nationals are probably the worst team assembled in the last 20 years, and Barry Bonds would not help much. But what else can the team do, Lerner wont spend money and doesn't plan on it in the future. It takes a minimum of 10 years to build a fan base, so somethings got to give to make it that long. Either the scouts and the players have to get better or the Lerners need to start spending some dough. Well other then the half-billion they spent buying the team. Hopefully the Nationals front office will start taking chances on people that are good and not just filled with potential. Let me remind you, I am a Dodgers fan, so I am in no way a Bonds fan. But I am a baseball fan and I would like to see the Nationals do something out of the ordinary to build the franchise.
More after the jump
First up the Nationals:
They would get a legitimate power threat to knock runners in, having Christian Guzman batting .313 with 126 hits and only 54 runs scored is disgusting. The Nationals biggest HR threat may get 20 HRs this season, Bonds would be a major addition in the category.
Opposing fans love to go to the game and boo Barry, getting more fans in the nice new ballpark is the idea, right? Maybe the fans that come to boo Barry would realize the park is worth coming to and keep coming back.
Barry Bonds works hard, he may have cheated but you don't become one of the best players of all-time through roids and a good gene pool. If the younger guys see what it takes to be a HOF caliber player, maybe they will work that much harder and pick up some of his good habits.
Bonds gets national attention, the more Bonds is on TV the higher the ratings.
It would only be a half season thing, if he doesn't play well or is a distraction your not burning cash farther down the line
Those are a couple reasons that the Nationals would benefit from the signing of Barry Bonds.
And Barry's
Barrys benefits are more short-term but could help him in the long run
He could show that's it not all about the money, by taking a pay cut to play in the nation's capitol
He could work on his relationship with reporters and maybe get a better shot at getting in the HOF. DC is known for its spin doctors.
Barry could pull farther away from Hank Aaron's mark, making him a must vote for the HOF
He could hang out with Meat Hook, who wouldn't want to hang with this guy?
The Nationals are probably the worst team assembled in the last 20 years, and Barry Bonds would not help much. But what else can the team do, Lerner wont spend money and doesn't plan on it in the future. It takes a minimum of 10 years to build a fan base, so somethings got to give to make it that long. Either the scouts and the players have to get better or the Lerners need to start spending some dough. Well other then the half-billion they spent buying the team. Hopefully the Nationals front office will start taking chances on people that are good and not just filled with potential. Let me remind you, I am a Dodgers fan, so I am in no way a Bonds fan. But I am a baseball fan and I would like to see the Nationals do something out of the ordinary to build the franchise.
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