With legal troubles mounting and the obvious negative reactions from teams in Major League Baseball, Barry Bonds should retire. Bonds has achieved milestones that tend to happen so rarely in any sport. Baseball has been very good to and for Bonds, but the past couple of years Barry Bonds has not been good for baseball and even the fans. Fans are tired of the steroid talk and tired of the perception that the game that they love is all but like pro-wrestling.

On March 27^th, Bonds’ picture in left field at the Giants’ home stadium was taken down and showed the Giants were prepared to move on without Bonds.  Giants’ fans seemed to be showing that their love for the team is also waning as ticket sales are down for the 2008 season. Fans just don’t see the Giant’s being competitive or exciting without Bonds.

Even though ticket sales are down, the overall perception of Bonds might have hurt ticket sales even more if Bonds were to stay with in San Francisco. Especially with Bonds facing months, maybe even years, of jail time due to being charged with federal perjury and obstruction charges.

If Bonds was not to retire where would he go? Every American League team has turned down any talks with Bonds and every National League team does not want a 43 year old playing left field. Besides that Bonds would not want to be a bench player just coming off to pinch hit.

There were talks all offseason about Bonds heading to AL teams such as Seattle, Kansas City, or Minnesota. Even the Yankees were talked about. In the long run Seattle doesn’t want to pay for Bonds, Kansas City doesn’t want to pay for Bonds, and New York has enough problems with Jason Giambi.

There were also talks of Bonds going to the often hurt outfield of the New York Mets. Again money and fear of age along with the bad knees of Bonds scarred off the Mets. The one NL that could use Bonds more then any team would be the Florida Marlins. Bonds could have been used in a platoon in the left field and a pinch hitter. The Marlins could have used the stardom that Bonds tends to bring anywhere he goes.

Bonds does have a third option, Japan. Japanese baseball would be a great place for Bonds to play. The money is there, the fans are there, and Bonds could be the best hitter ever in Japan even if it were to be just one season. If Barry Bonds loves baseball as much as he proclaims he would go to Japan and finish his career.

Sadly Bonds will not go to Japan and be the real “Godzilla”. Bonds wants a World Series ring. Bonds needs it because right now; he is not going to the Hall of Fame without a legitimate showing that he can lead a team and do it while being tested for any sort of performance enhancers. Right now he has to be hoping that a team suffers an injury that can propel him to a team that is competing for the playoffs. His playing this year for a contender is vital to any hope of getting inducted in to a place that everyone knows he has been dreaming of his entire career. People have to remember his career numbers as of April 1, 2008 look as follows: .298 BA, 762 HR, 1996 RBI’s, 2935 hits, 514 SB, .444 OBP, and .607 SLG%. Those numbers would be enough, but with Bonds’ personal life, he has made himself his only liability from reaching the HOF.

If Bonds is not picked up by a team by the end of July 2008, he should retire. Bonds will face his court dates and no matter what happens he will be able to land on his feet and still do what he likes to do. Bonds, no matter what you think of him or what he does, he always lands on his feet. Even if he doesn’t land in the Hall of Fame in the next ten years, I think that a change in public opinion could still get him in.

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