All-time Major League Baseball home run king Barry Bonds was often viewed as antagonistic toward the media during his playing career, and the current Miami Marlins hitting coach now takes full responsibility for that perception.
In an interview with Terence Moore of Sports on Earth, the former Pittsburgh Pirates and San Francisco Giants All-Star showed regret for his unpleasant demeanor over the course of his 22 years as an MLB player:
Me. It's on me. I'm to blame for the way I was [portrayed], because I was a dumbass. I was straight stupid, and I'll be the first to admit it. I mean, I was just flat-out dumb. What can I say? I'm not going to try to justify the way I acted toward people. I was stupid. It wasn't an image that I invented on purpose. It actually escalated into that, and then I maintained it. You know what I mean? It was never something that I really ever wanted. No one wants to be treated like that, because I was considered to be a terrible person. You'd have to be insane to want to be treated like that. That makes no sense.
Bonds said he took steps to change the way his personality was viewed at times, but he eventually always went back to the cantankerous persona the media had grown accustomed to:
Hell, I kick myself now, because I'm getting great press [since being more cooperative], and I could have had a trillion more endorsements, but that wasn't my driving force. ... So I just said, "I've created this fire around me, and I'm stuck in it, so I might as well live with the flames."
Bonds told Moore his issues with the media began as a young player with the Pirates due to the pressure on his shoulders to lead the Bucs to greatness.
While the manner in which Bonds carried himself off the field often made him a target for criticism, he was among the greatest all-around players to ever set foot on a baseball diamond.
He is a seven-time National League MVP and the all-time leader in both home runs (762) and walks (2,558), and he easily would have been a first-ballot Hall of Famer if not for questions regarding the use of performance-enhancing drugs.
Although Bonds is now seemingly remorseful for the way he acted, he has no qualms about the work he put in to become a dominant player:
The one thing that I would never, ever reflect on and talk about changing from the past is my ability with what I did out there on the field. When it came to [preparing for and playing the game], I did that right. But as far as my attitude and the way I handled things, I just didn't do it the right way.
While a certain degree of pressure comes with being a big league hitting coach, it pales in comparison to the expectation of leading a team to a championship every year.
The 51-year-old Bonds has seemingly mellowed since becoming Miami's hitting coach, and while he may never fully erase his previous reputation, his comments may help people understand his actions.
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