Miami Marlins hitting coach Barry Bonds doesn't see his all-time home run record falling anytime soon.
New York Yankees designated hitter Alex Rodriguez is the only active player with a genuine chance of catching Bonds' career mark of 762 homers. Bonds, however, was dismissive of the possibility, telling the New York Daily News' Christian Red on Monday, "No, not in two years."
Last month, Rodriguez revealed to ESPN.com's Andrew Marchand that he plans to retire following the 2017 season. Should A-Rod stick to his word, Bonds has every right to be skeptical of the future Hall of Famer overtaking him in the record books.
Rodriguez entered Tuesday with 688 career home runs through five games in 2016, so between now and the end of next year, he needs to hit 75 more homers to be the all-time king. Not only will Rodriguez need to remain healthy, but he'll also have to be productive at the plate during his age-40 and age-41 seasons. While he hit 33 home runs in 2015, he had 41 in his three previous seasons combined.
Los Angeles Angels first baseman Albert Pujols is second in career home runs (560) among active players, while retiring Boston Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz is third (505). Angels outfielder Mike Trout, Marlins outfielder Giancarlo Stanton and Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper are seemingly the only potential threats to Bonds, and that's only by projecting at least a decade down the road.
After Hank Aaron passed Babe Ruth on the home run list, his record stood for 33 years before Bonds broke it in 2007 as the steroid era was drawing to a close in MLB.
If A-Rod is unable to chase down Bonds, it might be a long, long time before anybody comes close to approaching the legendary slugger.
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