Posted By:
Chris CountsIf David Eckstein were to record Bobby Bonds' career statistics, he would unquestionably be in the HOF. But whereas Eckstein is the consummate overachieving scrappy and hustling ballplayer, Bobby Bonds, justly or unjustly, was percieved of as being somewhat of a slacker. Bobby's rise coincided with my rising interest in baseball. I watched him play many times as both a Giant and an Angel during my youth. He was looked upon as an underachiever by many fans. I personally watched him sitting on the bench on numerous occassions, smoking a cigarette and appearing disinterested in the game (I have the same image of Dave Parker). Even as a youngster, I heard other second-hand tid-bits about him, which I'm hesitant to mention here, that brought up concerns about his personal character. Once he left the Giants (traded for Bobby Murcer), he kept getting traded until he had nothing left in the tank. Even though he was by far the Angels' best position player, they traded him just a year later. He was certainly an extremely talented player, but there were always questions he wasn't playing up to his potential, not the kind of stuff HOF voters like to hear ...