Barry Bonds says he can 'without a doubt' still hit a homer to the bay
Former San Francisco Giants legend Barry Bonds may be 52, but he still thinks he can play a little bit. During an interview in the broadcast booth Sunday, Bonds said he still believes he can hit a home run into McCovey Cove.
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He seems pretty darn sure of it too. When asked if he thought he could hit another splash ball into the San Francisco Bay, Bonds immediately responded “I promise you I will. Without a doubt.” He goes on to predict that it would take him roughly 12 swings to do it. “Eight to get warmed up, three pop ups and then I would get it,” he said.
He was slightly more modest when asked whether he could still play. That question was posed to Bonds by television broadcasters Duane Kuiper and Mike Krukow earlier in the interview. Bonds told them he could last “about an inning or two.”
Now, we have no problem offering skepticism at a 52-year-old Bonds taking the field for a few innings. Defensively, that could be a disaster. But we’re not sure we can mock his home run claim.
Bonds proved he’s still capable of dingers during spring training earlier this year. He also allegedly won a Home Run Derby that featured Miami Marlins players when he was the team’s hitting coach in 2016. Yes, Bonds, who was 51 at the time, reportedly beat Giancarlo Stanton in a Home Run Derby.
Hitting a normal home run and hitting one in McCovey Cove are two different things, though. We know Bonds can still hit for power, but can he really send one that far? Again, it’s tough to fully doubt him. He does own 35 of the 73 splash hits the team has recorded. Who’s to say he couldn’t add one more?
Given Bonds’ confidence, and the stories from the past few springs, we’re hoping Bonds puts his theory to the test pretty soon. We would pay to watch some former legends hold their own Home Run Derby each season.
If that’s not enough of a challenge for the home run king, we would gladly watch him take on current major-leaguers in just a few weeks. If anything, it would prove whether he’s still capable of out-homering Stanton.
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Chris Cwik is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at christophercwik@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Chris_Cwik
