Barry Bonds said the most amazing thing this weekend. It was not about steroids or the U.S. justice system, though he talked about that, too. No, what Bonds told reporters in San Francisco was this:

"I gave my life and soul to that game. That's what's heartbreaking. That's the hard part of it. My (reputation) was kind of iffy anyway. I created that guy out there for entertainment only. Whether you hated me or liked me, you were there. And I only wanted you there. I just wanted you to see the show. That was it. All I ever wanted was for people to have a good time and enjoy it. It was fun to come out and people would boo or yay or whatever. They all showed up to see whatever would happen next and it motivated me to play hard."

I created that guy out there for entertainment only. Whether you hated me or liked me, you were there.

If this were the case, of course, Barry Bonds would have an easy second career. He could be an Oscar-winning actor. After all, this would mean that he spent two decades brushing people off, alienating himself from teammates and irritating the media, just so people could have a good time. What an impressive performance, and how charitable of him.

I'm not here to skewer Bonds. That's no longer our national sport, and the man is retired. We don't need to have a hammer at the ready for every time his head pops up in public.