[Jack Quinn]

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NEW YORK -- Barry Bonds would boycott Cooperstown if the Hall of Fame displays his record-breaking home run ball with an asterisk.

That includes skipping his potential induction ceremony.

"I won't go. I won't be part of it," Bonds said in an interview with MSNBC that aired Thursday night. "You can call me, but I won't be there."

The ball Bonds hit for home run No. 756 this season will be branded with an asterisk and sent to the Hall. Fashion designer Marc Ecko bought the ball in an online auction and set up a Web site for fans to vote on its fate. In late September, he announced fans voted to send the ball to Cooperstown with an asterisk.

Of course, the asterisk suggests Bonds' record is tainted by alleged steroid use. The slugger has denied knowingly using performance-enhancing drugs. Fans brought signs with asterisks to ballparks this season as he neared Hank Aaron's career home run mark.

Bonds has called Ecko "an idiot."

"I don't think you can put an asterisk in the game of baseball, and I don't think that the Hall of Fame can accept an asterisk," Bonds said. "You cannot give people the freedom, the right to alter history. You can't do it. There's no such thing as an asterisk in baseball."

Hall of Fame vice president Jeff Idelson declined to comment Thursday night.

Hall president Dale Petroskey has said accepting the ball doesn't mean the museum endorses the viewpoint that Bonds used illegal substances. He said the museum would be "delighted" to have the ball.

"It's a historic piece of baseball history," Petroskey said in September.

So, if the Hall goes through with the asterisk display?

"I will never be in the Hall of Fame. Never," Bonds said. "Barry Bonds will not be there.

"That's my emotions now. That's how I feel now. When I decide to retire five years from now, we'll see where they are at that moment," he added. "We'll see where they are at that time, and maybe I'll reconsider. But it's their position and where their position will be will be the determination of what my decision will be at that time."

Giants general manager Brian Sabean reiterated Thursday that the team won't bring back Bonds next season. The seven-time NL MVP, who has spent 15 of his 22 major league seasons in San Francisco, was asked whether he will retire as a Giant.

"Yeah, it's my house. No matter what that's my house, no one's going to take that away, no one ever," Bonds answered. "No one's going to take the love of that city of me away, ever."

Bonds, who has 762 homers, broke Aaron's record with a shot into the right-center seats off Washington Nationals pitcher Mike Bacsik at San Francisco on Aug. 7.

Matt Murphy, a 21-year-old student and construction supervisor from New York, emerged from a scuffle holding the ball. He said he decided to sell it because he couldn't afford to pay the taxes required to keep it.

Bonds told MSNBC he hoped to reach 764 homers because he was born in July 1964. He said he's been working out and still is considering whether to play next season.

"I may hit two home runs so I can go home. I just think that I have a lot of game left. I think that I can help a team with a championship," Bonds said. "I'm a hell of a part-time player, too."

Bonds said he won't talk to George Mitchell's staff looking into steroids use in baseball while he is under investigation in the BALCO case. A grand jury has been investigating whether Bonds committed perjury when he testified he never knowingly took performance-enhancing drugs.

"I know it ends in January, so a couple more months. But I haven't been keeping up with it. Not at all," Bonds said. "I have nothing to hide. I have said that before and I will say it now and I will look you in the face. I have nothing to hide, nothing. So look all you want to."

"You cannot give people the freedom, the right to alter history.

Oh Barry, you so crazy! What's the weather like on Planet Barry?

[The Jewish Cunthead]

Damn. I was hoping Barry gets to the podium only to have the other HOFers turn their backs on him. Aaron also said he wasn't going to be a part of 756 and there he was on the jumbotron, albeit in a taped message. Whenever Barry gets the call, he'll be there just to shove it in our fucking faces.

[National Champion Chris Cole]

Fuck Bonds. I hope the Hall doesn't back away and shows off the ball anyway. I was listening to Mike & Mike ths morning and Golic pissed me off by saying they shouldn't show the ball. Fuck that. The asterisk is part of the history of the record if Barry or anybody else likes it or not.

[Lucky]

Barry's right. The asterisk was bullshit. The Hall should reject it. Otherwise you're setting a precedent. Papelbon lost the 2007 final ball. Maybe someone should go brand a dollar sign on it because they think spending is out of control. Then I'll go brand a noose on Ty Cobb's bat because he was a racist prick. Beer bottle on Babe's. Drunk.

Once again Bonds is the target so we're ok with juvenile and unfair treatment. Because unsympathetic victim = no crime.

[National Champion Chris Cole]

I would love for him to hit 2 HRs and then go home. This is the first I've hard about his love for 764.

[National Champion Chris Cole]

Lucky, I'm not endorsing an official asterisk on the record or even on Barry's future plaque. But the Hall of Fame Museum is a perfectly acceptable place to showcase the outrage the fans had for the breaking of the record. The ball is the symbol for it.

[Lucky]

If he isn't aware of it someone's gonna clue him into how many records and milestones he can hit easily in 2008.

If he hits 2 HRs he'll realize he's only a handful of RBI's away from 1000.

If he gets there he'll realize he's only a handful of Hs away from 3000.

Then he'll realize he's about to break Rickey's R record.

He's played 126+ games 2 years in a row and his numbers improved from '06 to '07. If he finds a nice DH role on a contender he's gonna have a great chance to produce big numbers, reach a ton of milestones and records, and win a championship. He's human. He grew up in baseball. That stuff means things to him. And he knows that the best way to shove it in the face of his haters is to win a Championship, get 3000 H, add the R record to the HR record. He may not care about the hearts and minds but I bet he'll take joy with being all over the history and record books his critics so love.

[Lucky]

I'm not saying the Hall should ignore the controversy. There should be a plaque detailing it and other artifacts next to it. But a copy of the book in the Hall too. Its part of the story.

Fans taking it on themselves to deface a piece of history because of personal sentiment is bullshit and shouldn't be encouraged. Reject the ball, publicly criticize the actions of the owner and all those who voted, put a plaque there that says "The ball was rejected after being defaced to push an agenda." Otherwise wait for Burger King to buy A-Rod's ball and brand their logo on it.

[Pun]

"I don't think you can put an asterisk in the game of baseball, and I don't think that the Hall of Fame can accept an asterisk,"

Correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't Roger Maris' record have an asterisk?

[Lucky]

You're wrong. Not only did Faye Vincent bring an end to that nonsense in the '90s but in reality it was imaginary. Frick was biased and wanted to undermine Maris' accomplishment, but he never once used the word "asterisk" and he never assigned anything to Maris' record. Those who put it in their books did so of their own decision or because they bought into the myth of it. It never actually existed. Frick himself tried to convince people of that in the '70s and Vincent finally did with a dog and pony show.

It was a mythical thing based on one generations' anger over the loss of a major record from a loved and historic player by a "less deserving" one who got to play with advantages as they saw. Sound familiar?

If the fanbase wants an asterisk on Bonds let them conjure it up and pretend its there like they did with Maris. If its strong enough it will become just as "real" as Maris' to the point where you won't realize it never actually existed.

[Pun]

Ouch! I got Lucky venom all over me.

[Lucky]

That actually wasn't supposed to have any venom on it. Just just kinda fact. Frick was Babe's ghostwriter. Frick never did anything and the asterisk was a media creation. The media and the fans simply let it become real despite baseball. Frick tried to end it and Vincent did. But it was just a big "perception = reality" situation which would be fine for me with Bonds.

If that's the way history chooses to remember him, so be it. You shouldn't be branding asterisks into historical artifacts to push across an agenda based on some 3 day internet vote of a minority of the fanbase.

[Pun]

But I don't think it's a minority of the fanbase, Lucky. I'm not sure how you quantify it, but I'm willing to be a majority of the fans, especially outside of San Francisco, have no problem whatsoever with the asterisk. I actually think views like yours are in the minority.

[Lucky]

I'm not saying your opinion is minority. I'm saying that those who made the decision to brand that ball were a CLEAR and undeniable minority. It was a 3 day internet poll. The poll was passed around to mostly pissed off people. Stayed pretty true to one generation and demographic and to the more hardcore fans. And by the time I clicked on it it was over. A minority of the baseball fanbase made the decision to brand that ball. That's bullshit and should NOT be encouraged.

If you put a gun to my head I'd bet more people would want an asterisk than not. So if that's the case let that majority of the fanbase apply the perception and create a "mental asterisk" just as with Maris. If the hate, criticism, doubt, or whatever is strong enough BALCO will never be forgotten. Bonds' name and record will remain linked to steroids. If its not strong enough then in time the baseball world will "forgive" it and look past it. And if its really not strong enough than it will eventually be forgotten. Let it play out as it will.

No bullshit banning based on subjective and personal rulings. No bullshit asterisk based on subjective and personal rulings. And don't let a few hundred or thousand fans dictate how history is viewed by millions. Because that's bullshit.

The asterisk represents those who voted. That's it. You might agree with the sentiment without having voted but I disagree without having. So fuck the asshole who bought a place in history for himself with that online poll. And fuck the idea of letting a small minority of fans who were aware, able, and motivated to vote for that thing dictate history. Bonds and the record will. Like I said, I'm all for the Hall representing every reasonable part of this story. Balco, the rumors, the fact that the ball was vandalized by pissed off fans.

But don't tell me that a couple of thousand online voters are the voice of baseball.

[Lucky]

And now that I look it up there wasn't even that overwhelming of a positive vote. 47% brand it, 34% don't. 13% difference gets to change the face of baseball history? Fuck that douchebag. Bonds is a douchebag and so is he. Bonds made history. Douchebag bought and changed it.

[National Champion Chris Cole]

Your being too literal. The reason the idea was even created by this guy was because the sentiment of most of the nation was that the record was tainted. The guy could have not even bothered with the poll and did it anyway. At least he tried to legitimize the outcome somewhat. And I saw links to that site from ESPN, SI, and Sportsline. I think they probably got a good cross section of fans voting not just Bonds haters.

[National Champion Chris Cole]

The other 14% were the ones that wanted in Space, right? I think that in itself is probably a vote against Bonds. More like a 60/40 split.

[Lucky]

metallikid said:

Your being too literal. The reason the idea was even created by this guy was because the sentiment of most of the nation was that the record was tainted. The guy could have not even bothered with the poll and did it anyway. At least he tried to legitimize the outcome somewhat. And I saw links to that site from ESPN, SI, and Sportsline. I think they probably got a good cross section of fans voting not just Bonds haters.

You'll never even possibly know that. Online polls are firmly established as an absolute horrible way to gauge an opinion. All you did was reconfirm a believe you had.

"Most fans want it asterisked."
"Well, we'll do a very short term poll to a select group of fans to prove it."
"Its proven! Yay for the not so scientific process! Lets brand the thing!"

You also can't presume the 14% negative votes. They could be comic votes easily.

Also, help me out. Since when has an online poll existed where people didn't vote multiple times? Like I said, I never clicked on the site before the poll ended. Did he ask for a Social Security number? Or if I so pleased could I have voted 200 times?

It was a small minority of the fanbase. That's undeniable. They should not be allowed to decide the fate of a historical object. That's purely bullshit. I think Kenny Rogers was a cheater. Can I start an online poll to determine the validity of the '06 Tigers' success? Belichek's a cheater. Can we do an online poll to determine how the Patriot dynasty will be represented in Campton?

Its Bonds. Fuck him. He's scum undeserving of basic respect and fair rulings.

[Lucky]

And he didn't try to legitimize bullshit. That's a joke, sorry, Chris. He put an absurd poll up that directly ripped off a past baseball event (the Bartman ball). It got his name all over the media. Barry Bonds asked why you'd pay 3 quarters of a million dollars to brand the ball. Because it got him a LOT of media attention and bought him a place in history, Barry. Duh.

Oh wait, I'm sure the douchebag did it for the love the game and the integrity. $750,000 to defend the integrity of baseball! Yeah, that sounds likely.

[National Champion Chris Cole]

I figured he did it because he was a fashion designer or something like that and wanted the advertising that came with all the hoolah. It probably worked. Regardless he bought the ball and woned it and could do whatever he wants with it. He chose to donate it to the Hall slightly altered. Now its the Hall's choice to display it or not. If they didn't feel like the asterisk represented the voice of the fan they they would not accept it.

Its Bonds. Fuck him.

Quoted for Truth. And don't give me fair ruling ro basic respect when he's been a lieing douchebag for 7 years. His record is far from fair and he obviously has little respect for the game. He cares about Barry Bonds. Period.

[Lucky]

So what? What makes you better than the bad guys is not stooping to their levels. Because Bonds is a douche doesn't mean baseball, its fans, media, or whatever should fuck up their reputations or integrity to fuck him. That's just petty and stupid. Like I said, if the majority feels like you do won't it just exist in our collective memory just as Maris' did? Just as we remember Cobb is a racist and Babe was a drunk? There's no asterisk on Maris and no not on the Hall of Famers' plaques. We still manage to retain that memory of them as one of the first things we know. OJ Simpson's Hall of Fame plaque will always be remembered for what it is. A percentage of the community still think MJ gambled his way out of the NBA and Stern covered up for him.

Noone needed to stick that damn asterisk on the ball. Not if you guys are right and the fans really do care about this like you do. And if they don't, then you guys forced your interpretation on history.

[Lou]

I gotta say I agree with Lucky. I explained over in OO why I don't think the hall should accept the ball if it has been branded. Until otherwise ruled it is an official record.

Some jackass shouldn't get to decide he is going to vandalize the ball to bring attention to himself just because it is a hot button topic to baseball fans.