In wake of all of these Barry Bonds rumors, the team has been receiving more national exposure than they have for anything else this offseason. This is strange since we have announced a new stadium, unveiled new uniforms, signed Percival and Floyd, and resigned Pena and Shields, but of course all of these do not compare to the public relations juggernaut that is Barry Bonds.
With all of this exposure we have found out that even though the team has made all of those changes this offseason, we are still seen as one of the biggest jokes in baseball. In watching PTI yesterday you could see Tony Kornheiser on the subject of Barry coming to Tampa comment saying:
It is not just Tony, looking around you will find that when people mention signing Bonds would be good for Tampa, it is because it would put fans in the seats, and not because it would make them a contender. While the most informed minds in baseball such as BP's Will Carroll or Baseball America's Jim Callis know that this team is extremely close to turning the corner, to the average fan we are still the joke of the league.
I am in favor of signing Bonds if we were to have the opportunity, because I think he would make the team better, and ultimately that is the goal. Although, when we start winning games, I would hate to see Bonds getting all of the credit, as he naturally would. When in fact this team will be improved already, and Bonds would just be icing on the cake.
I am sorry for the rant, maybe I am just sick of being at the bottom of every punchline for the last ten years, but in the last day it is still obvious to see the ignorance of most of the baseball community.