Yankees must never forget Barry Bonds, the needle, and the damage done

Choosing to Electrocute Yourself is not the Same as Being Struck by Lightning

But even that is not the point. No, Jay’s real mistake is confusing the arbitrary gifts of fate with personal responsibility, an all too common error.

Babe made it clear he was not happy that the Red Sox forced him to pitch. And DiMaggio was equally chagrined to lose three Yankees years that could have been the best of his career because some guy in Germany went power mad at the same time.

Those players, and myriad more had to deal with forces beyond their control. It makes their accomplishments praiseworthy.

But Bonds made a choice. Everyone in baseball saw what Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa did in the late nineties; we all saw the “Chicks dig the long ball” commercial. Only Bonds and a few others, however, responded by joining the party. His attitude seems to have been; I’ll show them how to cheat! I’ll become the biggest cheater of all!

And because it has been a decade or so since he made those conscious decisions, years since he spent day in and day out planning and executing his systematic program of deception, Jay feels it’s time we all just forget about it.

Bonds, as far as Mr. Jaffe is concerned, deserves approbation and entry into the HoF simply because it’s been a while since he last had the opportunity to dishonor the game. As noted above, Yankees fans have longer memories than that.