Notes on Barry Bonds‘ record setting home run against the Washington Nationals.
- The game, which aired on ESPN2, was preempted until 10:33 PM ET because the preceding Indiana Fever/Chicago Sky game went into double-overtime.
- CNN and FOX News Channel cut into programming to deliver news about Bonds’ home run.
- A Bonds-specific graphic has taken over both the ESPN and ESPNews BottomLine.
- Dave O’Brien‘s call on ESPN2: “This a swing and a high fly ball, right center field. Back it goes, racing back, Logan jumping up — and that ball is gone! Number 756! Barry Bonds stands alone. And on the night of August 7, 2007, in San Francisco, California, Barry Lamar Bonds has hit more home runs than any major leaguer in the history of baseball.”
- ESPN guest: Marcus Breston, Sacramento Bee: generally negative, makes the point that he, as a Giants fan, would prefer to see his team win the World Series.
- ESPNews guest: Terrence Moore, Atlanta Journal Constitution: “No matter what Barry Bonds does … A Rod can top that mark, and the standard bearer will still be Hank Aaron. The standard bearer is [the person] who the public will look at as the legitimate home run leader.” Moore asserts that the Hank Aaron statement on the record was planned in advance, with prodding from baseball commissioner Bud Selig. Aaron “has nothing against Barry Bonds”, has avoided talking about the home run chase because “he does not want to relive ’72, ’73, ’74 all over again, which were terrible times for him.”
- ESPNews guest: Jeff Pearlman, author of Love Me, Hate Me: “I find myself disappointed, because I grew up watching Hank Aaron and knowing Hank Aaron, and knowing what he went through … for Bonds to come along and cheat to do it, I know its becoming an unpopular view, as a baseball fan it bums me out.”
- ESPN guest: Lance Williams, author of Game of Shadows, is on SportsCenter at the same time Pearlman is on ESPNews. On how this night will be looked at in the future: “Well it will depend on official action. If baseball does nothing, and if federal prosecutors do nothing, then it will be as it is now. If he is indicted, or Mitchell does a tough report, that could knock the record down a bit.”
- As was done in this space on Saturday night, when Bonds hit #755, here are screenshots of how some of the major websites handled the accomplishment:
MSNBC main page:
MSNBC sports page:
SI.com:
ESPN.com was finally able to use the graphic they mistakenly put up on Saturday night:
CNN.com:
