Barry Bonds ties Hank Aaron's home run record
Sunday, August 5, 2007
Barry Bonds of the San Francisco Giants has officially tied Hank Aaron's decades old home run record. Bonds hit the home run at PETCO Park in an away game against the San Diego Padres Saturday night. Pitcher Clay Hensley gave up the homer in the second inning, a 382 foot homer over the left-center field wall. Adam Hughes, a 33-year old plumber caught the ball, which is worth millions of dollars on the collectibles market. Security guards quickly escorted the plumber and the ball from the stands.
In post game interviews, Barry said, "The hard part is over," referring to the long try to tie the record. Aaron did not issue a statement.
Bonds did not comment yesterday on the steroids scandal that has tainted his last several years in baseball. Currently, Bonds is under investigation for perjury by a federal grand jury regarding his 2003 testimony on the BALCO steroids case, in which he denied using performance-enhancing drugs. Bonds allegedly used steroids, which were not prohibited by Major League Baseball at the time, though they could not be obtained without a prescription.
Bonds is not only first in career home runs but also is first in career walks and intentional walks. Bonds also holds the single-season home run record with 73 home runs in 2001.
Bonds, a sure fire Hall of Famer, is one of the oldest players in the majors. He turned 43 on July 24. So far, Bonds has hit 21 home runs this season.
Sources
- The Associated Press. "Barry Bonds Hits 755th Home Run to Tie Hank Aaron's Record" — FOXnews.com, August 5, 2007
- Janie McCauley. "Padres 3, Giants 2, 12 innings" — Yahoo! Sports, August 4, 2007
