With all of the sturm und drang that goes with following Barry Bonds, it's easy to forget that he's, you know, still a ballplayer. Once in a while, when a reporter decides to talk to him rather than about and around him, you get an interesting insight. For example, I bet you didn't know that the most feared power hitter in sixty or seventy years hates hitting in homer-friendly ballparks:
Bonds said he actually prefers hitting in bigger stadiums because it forces him to narrow his focus even more. He said he doesn't like the feeling of a small ballpark because "it feels like everything, the pitcher, is right on top of you."
And Randy Winn seems to pretty accurately sum up the Barry Bonds-on-the-road experience:
And how will they receive Bonds, who is nine home runs away from breaking the all-time home run record? "The standard stuff, but really loud," Winn said. "Enthusiastic fans, small ballpark, close quarters — it's going to be loud, and it's going to be packed because of the dichotomy of Barry. They love to see him, they want to see him hit it really, really far, but then boo him after he does it."
