So?

Barry Bonds hit No. 756 to the deepest part of the ballpark Tuesday night, and hammered home the point: Like him or not, legitimate or not, he is baseball’s new home run king.

Bonds broke Hank Aaron’s storied record in the fifth inning, hitting a 3-2 pitch from Washington’s Mike Bacsik 435 feet to right-center field. Three days earlier, Bonds tied the Hammer with a shot to left- center in San Diego.

“Thank you very much. I got to thank all of you, all the fans here in San Francisco. It’s been fantastic,” he said shortly after crossing home plate, his godfather, Willie Mays, at his side.

Conspicuous by their absence were the commissioner and Aaron himself.

Though he was on hand for the tying homer, deciding to put baseball history ahead of the steroid allegations that have plagued the Giants slugger, Bud Selig wasn’t there for the record-breaker.

So? Does it really matter? Thanks to players like Barry Bonds we’ll never know the true impact of steroid use in baseball and all of the records set from now on will most likely be questioned. And why? Because this is the age of steroid use.

I keep reading stories today that start with “no matter what you think of him” and “like him or not”. Each of those articles also state “it’s quite an accomplishment no matter how he did it”. Since when is using illegal drugs to enhance your performance “quite an accomplishment”?

As I was growing up, like most children, I heard all the stories about baseball’s greatest players. Mickey Mantle, Joe DiMaggio, Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Hank Aaron, they are all legends. In all of the times I heard their stories, I never heard the words “no matter what you think of him”, or “like him or not”. No one had to qualify their accomplishments. There should never be a disclaimer when you’re discussing the greatest people of the sport.

It looks like Barry Bonds has changed that. It’s a sad day for America’s pasttime.