A Ball With an Asterisk?

Former San Francisco Giant Barry Bonds has announced that if his record-setting 756th home run ball goes into the Hall of Fame with an asterisk on it, he will never set foot in the Hall of Fame, even if he is inducted.

In an interview with TV Broadcaster Jim Gray, Bonds denounced the decision to send his ball to the Hall of Fame, saying it taints his record. According to a release by MSNBC, Bonds said, "I don't think you can put an asterisk in the game of baseball and I don't think that the Hall of Fame can accept an asterisk in their Hall of Fame. You can't, you cannot give people the freedom, the right to alter history, you can't do it. There's no such thing as an asterisk in baseball."

Bonds' record-breaking ball was caught by 21-year-old Matt Murphy of New York, who decided to sell the ball because he couldn't afford to pay the taxes required to keep it. According to an article in the San Francisco Chronicle, "Bonds' 756th home run ball was purchased in an auction by Marc Ecko, a fashion designer. Ecko held an online vote on whether he should send the ball to Cooperstown as is, send it with an asterisk (to acknowledge the public suspicion that Bonds used steroids) or send it into outer space in a rocket. The asterisk option won."

According to an article by the Associated Press on FoxSports.com, the Hall of Fame will welcome the ball. "Hall president Dale Petroskey has said accepting the ball doesn't mean the museum endorses the viewpoint that Bonds used illegal substances. He said the museum would be 'delighted' to have the ball. 'It's a historic piece of baseball history,' Petroskey said in September."

A video on ESPN.com from "1st and 10" acknowledges that many agree with Bonds' sentiments. A commentator on the show says she agrees with Bonds 100 percent that the Hall of Fame should have a record-setting ball with an asterisk on it, especially because Bonds has not been proven to have taken steroids.

Bonds has said he will completely boycott Cooperstown and the Hall of Fame if the ball goes to rest there, even if that means skipping his induction ceremony. Since Bonds' induction into the hall is years away, it remains to be seen how this will all play out. For now, the story turns to his steroids use and whether or not he knowingly took performance-enhancing drugs.