Bonds on Bonds

I want to like Barry Bonds.  I really do.  Nothing would make me happier than to be able to root for him this season to pass the Babe and later Hank Aaron.  But I can't. 

I just caught the highlights from the first episode of "Bonds on Bonds." 

1) Why would we expect to see the real Barry Bonds?  Do we think we saw the real Bobby Knight on "Knight School"?  I don't think so.  This whole show is Barry's design on how he wants to be remembered.

2) Barry keeps promising to stop talking to the media, but all I've been seeing lately is Barry in the media.  He says he doesn't like the cameras, but everything I've seen really suggests that he loves the cameras.  He wants to be a movie star when he's finished, right?  Why would he choose a second career, possibly the only career, where there are even more cameras?  Maybe he actually likes the cameras after all.

3) From the highlights I saw, it appears as if Barry is trying to run a very neat trick on us.  He weeps in front of the camera, about how much everything weighs on him and the like.  But I don't know whether or not I can believe him.  If I should ask him "Barry, how can we believe you?  How can we believe you about steroids and not eating dinner at Ken Griffey's Jr.'s house and everything he would likely look in the camera and say "I don't give an 'f' whether you believe me or not."  And therein lies the problem.  Barry has no credibility and he is not willing to try to build any.  Derek Jeter has credibility.  Ken Griffey Jr. has credibility.  Dale Murphy had credibility.  Mark McGwire has none.  Raffy Palmeiro has none.  And Barry Bonds has none. 

There are some racist people in the world that hate Barry because of his skin color.  For that he has my deepest sympathy.  I also saw Ken Burns' Baseball, the final chapter, in which he interviews Hank Aaron.  Hank showed several letters that he received of the same type, death threats, racist propoganda and the like.  The implication that Barry attempts is that to question the validity of Barry is to side with the racists.  And nobody wants that.

He said, through tears, that he would "like to walk away, but he can't." and that "he doesn't need the money."  So the money means nothing to him?  Is that what I hear him saying?!?!?  That goes against everything I've ever read about Barry Bonds.  Remember that thing in New York a couple of years ago, when you could pay several hundred dollars to hang out with Barry for half a hour?  Both him and ARod participated, although ARod donated his share to charity.  Barry donated his share to Barry. 

All these things aside, I would like to root for Barry, I really would.  Steroids or not, he's still one of the greatest players I've ever seen.  But then, this magical thing happened: He started to hit more home runs as he got older; something that has never happened before.  Maybe it was his ego, his pride that made him do it; I don't know.  Maybe he is completely innocent, and all of these things (leaked grand jury testimony, Book of Shadows, etc.) have him all wrong.  But Barry surely isn't going to tell me.  Oh well.  Maybe he'll at least say some things about Jeff Kent, another guy I'm not particularly fond of.