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Giants Fans Were Really Happy To See Barry Bonds

Barry Bonds was at the center of a whole lot of steroid-related controversy throughout his playing days – and those questions didn’t end with his retirement, as his upcoming perjury trial shows. But none of that seemed to matter yesterday, when he gleefully went onto the field in San Francisco yesterday before Game 3 of the NLCS – a 3-0 Giants win – and was warmly received by an adoring crowd.

Bonds, according to the Sacramento Bee’s Marcos Breton and Ailene Voisin, was “downright ebullient,” which it’s safe to say is not the image most have of him. The crowd reception, said Terence Moore of Fanhouse, “was delirious.”

Ah, but not everyone was so gung-ho about this reunion, noted Craig Calcaterra of NBC’s Hardball Talk. While Bonds received a “loud ovation” (man, were these people happy or what?), not all media types were as pleased. Calcaterra noticed Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times tweeted:

SF Giants make you wonder if they have a clue. Bonds throws out first pitch. You can catch him again in March at his federal perjury trial.

Calcaterra’s point was essentially, “Come on, why ruin the fans’ fun?” We tend to agree. Bonds appeared yesterday as part of the Giants’ last pennant-winning team, from 2002. This was a moment for the fans to savor that team’s success, and bask in the most success the franchise has experienced since. Bonds was the reason that 2002 team was good. Let the fans remember that.

Yesterday wasn’t a day to rehash the steroids issue or an upcoming trial. It was to honor a team and, as Calcaterra correctly called it, “15 years of some of the most phenomenal baseball that has ever been played.” Come on, why ruin the fans’ fun?