• Barry Bonds

  From Stat Geek Baseball's, the Best Ever Book.
  
  It's kind of a shame really. But there's no good way to start this explanation of the second best player in baseball history, from a statistical standpoint, than to put it out front. PED allegations are a part of his story, whether we like it or not. Barry Bonds played in the steroid era. We'll leave it at that. How many, if any of his exploits are enhanced by playing in that time, we don't know. But he played in the era, enough said. There's no doubt that Barry Bonds was a great player. He had speed, power, defensive ability in his early years with Pittsburgh, and was one of the best players of his time. When Bonds came to the plate, managers shuddered. And they walked him just to avoid the inevitable, "Why did you pitch to him?" questions if the next pitch was deposited in the seats or even the bay. Bonds was a complete player from the start of his career, and by the end of it, had stolen 514 bases, #33 All-Time, to go along with those Home Runs and RBIs.
  
  To get an idea of just how great a player Bonds was in his early years, just take a gander at the last three years he played for the Pirates. 33, 116, 0.301 in 1990 followed by 25, 116, 0.292 in 1991 then 34, 103, 0.311. Bonds was well on his way to a stellar career then. Now just where it would rank if he remained on the path begun in Pittsburgh, it's only speculation. It's doubtful that he becomes a Top Ten player in baseball history, but he'd still rank pretty high. But according to the stats of his entire career, Bonds ranks as the 2nd best player. Discount the controversial side of the equation as much as you'd like. It's the best we can do at this moment in time. Bonds dominated the era that he played in, at a level that surpassed the others in the same boat. That's what the numbers say. And no, we don't like it.

Notes: Photo Credits: Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb; Library of Congress. Hank Aaron; Wikipedia Commons. AT&T Park; SXC.

HOF/HOFP - Hall of Fame player. PEVA - Player Rating for Season or Career. PEVA per Year - Average Player Rating per season. Seasons include all seasons played with no monimum.

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