Giant cheater

Bonds Exposed

Sports Illustrated: Beginning in 1998 with injections in his buttocks of Winstrol, a powerful steroid, Barry Bonds took a wide array of performance-enhancing drugs over at least five seasons in a massive doping regimen that grew more sophisticated as the years went on, according to Game of Shadows, a book written by two San Francisco Chronicle reporters at the forefront of reporting on the BALCO steroid distribution scandal.

The authors, Mark Fainaru-Wada and Lance Williams, describe in sometimes day-to-day, drug-by-drug detail how often and how deeply Bonds engaged in the persistent doping. For instance, the authors write that by 2001, when Bonds broke Mark McGwire's single-season home-run record (70) by belting 73, Bonds was using two designer steroids referred to as the Cream and the Clear, as well as insulin, human growth hormone, testosterone decanoate (a fast-acting steroid known as Mexican beans) and trenbolone, a steroid created to improve the muscle quality of cattle.

BALCO tracked Bonds' usage with doping calendars and folders -- detailing drugs, quantities, intervals and Bonds' testosterone levels -- that wound up in the hands of federal agents upon their Sept. 3, 2003 raid of the Burlingame, Calif., business.

Depending on the substance, Bonds used the drugs in virtually every conceivable form: injecting himself with a syringe or being injected by his trainer, Greg Anderson, swallowing pills, placing drops of liquid under his tongue, and, in the case of BALCO's notorious testosterone-based cream, applying it topically.

According to the book, Bonds gulped as many as 20 pills at a time and was so deeply reliant on his regimen that he ordered Anderson to start "cycles" -- a prescribed period of steroid use lasting about three weeks -- even when he was not due to begin one. Steroid users typically stop usage for a week or two periodically to allow the body to continue to produce natural testosterone; otherwise, such production diminishes or ceases with the continued introduction of synthetic forms of the muscle-building hormone.

Bonds called for the re-starting of cycles when he felt his energy and power start to drop. If Anderson told Bonds he was not due for another cycle, the authors write, Bonds would tell him, "F--- off, I'll do it myself.''

When informed of the book this morning and asked if he was concerned about it, Bonds told a group of reporters gathered around his locker, "Nope. I won't even look at it [the book]. For what? I won't even look at it. There's no need to." He then walked away.

The authors compiled the information over a two-year investigation that included, but was not limited to, court documents, affidavits filed by BALCO investigators, confidential memoranda of federal agents (including statements made to them by athletes and trainers), grand jury testimony, audiotapes and interviews with more than 200 sources. Some of the information previously was reported by the authors in the Chronicle. Some of the information is new. For instance, in an extensive note on sourcing, the authors said memos detailing statements by BALCO owner Victor Conte, vice president James Valente and Anderson to IRS special agent Jeff Novitzky were sealed when they first consulted them, but have been unsealed since.

What an apt first line. It's one of those stories that you always knew, but still go wow the first time you see it in cold, hard type, laid out detail after detail.

Barry Bonds is done. I never liked him--huge chip on his shoulder, plus nobody gets that much bigger and better at the end of a career. Worst of all, he didn't even seem to care; based on what's come out today, he had no hope or even expectation of hiding it for long. No sense of shame or even a basic level of respect for the game.

Just wipe him out. Along with Mark McGwire, probably Sammy Sosa. Wish it was as easy to compensate all the teams that lost games to the juiced-ones, or were impacted in their World Series hopes.

Major League baseball bears its share of the blame--if a city had no police officers, of course crime would run rampant. The book details how the San Francisco Giants turned a blind eye to their moneymaker; clown Bud Selig's exerted negative leadership on this issue, so it's no surprise that the MLB.com site has the Bonds story down in its one-line headlines section, and even there it's the 4th headline listed.

A line in the New York Times' coverage made me laugh out loud:

A new book says Barry Bonds became a devoted steroid user who was motivated to start taking performance-enhancing drugs by his jealousy over the attention that Mark McGwire received during his memorable home run chase with Sammy Sosa in 1998.

In "Game of Shadows: Barry Bonds, Balco and the Steroids Scandal That Rocked Professional Sports," the co-authors Mark Fainaru-Wada and Lance Williams offer a wide-ranging depiction of what they assert were Bonds's steroid involvement, his nasty temper and his obsession with McGwire.

The authors, reporters for The San Francisco Chronicle, said the information for their book came from multiple sources, including more than 1,000 pages of documents, interviews and grand jury testimony of Bonds and seven other athletes involved in the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative steroids case. They also said that Kimberly Bell, Bonds's former girlfriend, gave them legal correspondence, tapes of voice-mail messages and transcripts that related to their relationship.

The New York Times was unable to verify the information independently.

Well--duh! That's why it's called a scoop. The Chronicle reporters wrote an entire book, did the Times think its readers were expecting them to verify the book by deadline? Sheesh, the self-centeredness of the Times is at times astonishing. Nobody looks to them on sports; ESPN and Sports Illustrated leave them far behind in the dust, they're not even as good--except for their columnists--as USA Today, the Washington Post and MSNBC.com. Their sense of proportion in all this is about as well-calibrated as Bonds's.

I'm very curious about how baseball players will react to this, specifically opposing pitchers. I wonder how highly-competitive athletes like Roger Clemens and Curt Schilling, who love the game, play their heart out, and have always been clean, feel.

I have a suspicion that if Roger plays in the NL and beaned Bonds early in the season, a lot of other pitchers would follow suit. Let's see, Giants open at San Diego--given that the Padres' opening day pitcher is likely to be ace Jake Peavey, who Bonds victimized for his '700th' home run, I'm definitely tuning in.

Photo of Barry Bonds in front of the left field wall sign in between innings after hitting his 700th career home run by Jeff Chiu/AP via Barry Bond's website.