Wednesday, September 26, 2007

And the winner is... ASTERISK!





NEW YORK (AP) -- The ball Barry Bonds hit for his record-breaking 756th home run will be branded with an asterisk and sent to the Baseball Hall of Fame, its owner said Wednesday.

Fashion designer Marc Ecko, who bought the ball in an online auction, set up a Web site for fans to vote on the ball's fate, and the decision to brand it won out over the other options, sending it to the museum unblemished or launching it into space.

"We're going to be working with the folks at the Hall of Fame," Ecko said on NBC's "Today" show.

Ecko, whom Bonds called "an idiot" last week, had the winning bid Sept. 15 in the online auction for the ball that Bonds hit Aug. 7 to break Hank Aaron's record of 755 home runs. The final selling price was $752,467, well above most predictions that assumed Bonds' status as a lightning rod for the steroids debate in baseball would depress the value.

The asterisk suggests that Bonds' record is tainted by alleged steroid use. The slugger has denied knowingly using performance-enhancing drugs. Fans brought signs with asterisks on them to ballparks as he neared Aaron's hallowed mark.

Hall of Fame president Dale Petroskey, also interviewed on the show, said accepting the ball did not mean the Hall endorses the viewpoint that Barry Bonds used drugs.

"We're happy to get it," he said. "We're a nonprofit history museum, so this ball wouldn't be coming to Cooperstown without Marc Ecko buying it from the fan who caught it."

The Giants announced Friday they will part with Bonds after this season, the seven-time NL MVP's 15th in San Francisco and 22nd in the majors.

1 Comments:

At 3:12 PM , Blogger totallybloated said...

yes, he is an asshole. but unless you catch him on drugs, you shouldn't say he is on drugs. plus why is everyone acting like cheating doesn't happen in sports or is some new thing? Black sox? when was that 1918?

the guy broke the record, get over it. It is not like Hank Aaron is any less of a badass.

Ecko just paid 756k for some frame. Maybe next he will buy some Lee Harvey Oswald stuff and put and asterisk on that. Or chat it up with the Iranian President and put an asterisk on the holocaust museum. Whatever fake reality he wants to brand so he can sell some more $4000 "designer" shrugs.

 

Post a Comment

Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]

<< Home