I was yelling HEY THEY'RE CHEATING, and I was doing it all year long in 1998. A friend and I had an email dialogue going throughout the year discussing what a shame it all was. I remember sending him scans of McGwire's and Sosa's earlier baseball cards and the two of us joking about the 60 pounds of muscle they miraculously added. I remember us joking about Sosa's inability to reach down for ground balls hit to him in the outfield; I remember feeling badly for the Maris family when it was obvious that the HR record would not just be broken but obliterated.

My friend and I had a similar email dialogue 3 years later regarding Bonds, only I rooted FOR Bonds. Because I thought it further invalidated the "record", and because I figured it might result in some kind of investigation and change, which it eventually did.

Later, when Bonds was chasing Aaron, I was convinced there was a nod-and-a-wink among managers to walk Bonds like crazy in order to slow down his progress - to delay his setting the record until they could find just cause to suspend him, or until his body broke down and he retired. Sadly, Bonds prevailed, however MLB did manage to keep him from 3,000 hits and possibly the all-time runs, RBIs and EBH records.