The cruel twist of fate is that famous progeny are expected to follow in their parent’s footsteps. In the MLB world, numerous father-son duos exist that defy all expectations of the sport. While the Griffeys are arguably the most popular, there were also the Bonds. And although they were each beloved, Barry Bonds was not always a fan of Bobby Bonds.

Bonds Sr. was a San Francisco Giants legend who inspired his son to do the same. Given the nature of his career of choice, Bobby Bonds was an absentee father. Barry Bonds also spoke about how his dad’s ‘drinking problems‘ drove a wedge between them. And once, an already strained relationship was further made worse by the son’s questioning of his own beliefs.

Barry Bonds Felt ‘Pushed’ Into a Baseball Career

Putting aside the tainted image for a minute, let’s look at the legacy that comes with the name ‘Barry Bonds.’ MLB’s Home Run King and 7x NL MVP award winner, he received a litany of other titles. His unbelievable statistics have left a lasting name in baseball, even though some of those may have been steroid-influenced. However, astonishingly, Bonds once questioned his desire for the sport.

In their book Game of Shadows: Barry Bonds, BALCO, and the Steroids Scandal that Rocked Professional Sports, Mark Fainaru-Wada and Lance Williams dive into Bonds’ childhood. Given who his father was, he always felt that playing excellent baseball was what was expected of him.

READ MORE – “I Didn’t Have to Figure Things Out” – In Rare Instance, MLB Legend Barry Bonds Gives Credit to Dad for His Baseball Advice

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On page 45, they write, “Bonds would later try to describe the feeling of being pushed into a baseball career. “I was a celebrity child, not just in baseball by my own instincts,” is how he put it. The pressure changed the way he related to people and made him more withdrawn.”

Although at one point Bonds Jr. questioned his baseball intent, the story changed soon after.

Instead of Being ‘Bobby’s Son’, the Narrative Became ‘Barry’s Dad’

In the 2006 ESPN documentary “Bonds on Bonds,” the son talks about how he felt about meeting his father’s expectations of him. “I had a problem. I had a famous father. I didn’t want to play baseball because I didn’t want to do the same thing my father did. And that was a lot to have to do with the two because I had a lackadaisical attitude all the time.”

And yet, Barry Bonds soon left his father’s name in the dust with his own achievements. He may have been known as Bobby’s son at one point in time. But today, Bobby Bonds is called Barry’s dad, simple as that.

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