April 26, 2005

Hello Fans,

It was brought to my attention that a certain news organization reported Friday that I was not following the Giants' recommendations for my rehab. I would like to say that the Giants trainers are first class and we are all working hard together, to get me back on the field with my teammates and play for you fans.

I was off my crutches on Sunday and was able to spend quality time with my wife and daughter. It's nice when I meet fans on the street and they wish me well and tell me that they can't wait to see me back... what a great feeling. I can't forget to mention the hundreds of e-mails I received yesterday thanking me for giving all of you updated information without the spin.

On another note, we are also in the process of updating the site with
additional pictures and videos.

The countdown has started -- there are only four more days before I pick the April fan of the month, who will receive a signed product from me. So get those e-mails in.

Thanks for the support,

Barry Bonds

April 23, 2005

Hello Fans,

I just wanted to give you an update of what happened Thursday, 4/21. I had some fluid drained out of my right knee because there was a little bit of swelling. By draining the fluid, it alleviates the discomfort. My doctor wants me to use crutches for the next couple of days to make sure the fluid doesn't come right back. This was merely a precautionary measure. My spirits are still high about my recovery as a whole and I can't wait to get back to rehabbing next week.

The media has been requesting daily updates, but I feel it is best for everyone to hear about my status directly from me -- without any spin. Day to day, there isn't much change on my knee, but when there is something significant, like Thursday's events, I am able to report to you exactly what's going on.

On Friday, I had a great day at the ballpark. I participated in the "Buses for Baseball" program put on by the Major League Baseball Players Trust. Fifty students from Martin Luther King Middle School came and visited with me in the dugout prior to the game. I spent some time talking with the kids, finding out what sports they play. A funny moment happened when one of the young ladies came to up to shake my hand, but instead jumped up and gave me a giant bear hug. I don't know who was more surprised she did it, me or her! There was nothing like seeing the smiles and energy from those kids -- it makes me want to get back out there on the field.

During Spring Training, I attended a press conference at my alma mater, ASU, announcing the re-naming of the stadium to honor coach Jim Brock. After the announcement, I spent some time with the baseball team during their batting practice. I had a great time and was able to give the guys a few hitting pointers. Jeff Evans from ASU sent me this link today. Check it out.

Barry Bonds

April 20, 2005

Hello Fans,

Last week I went to Los Angeles for the Dodgers home opener. It was a real positive week for me, especially in my rehab. I would like to thank the fans in LA for the warm welcome -- ha ha! On Wednesday, I returned to my city, San Francisco. Thursday and Friday, Harvey, Tony and I walked the hill and the beach for the first time. Afterwards, we went to the ball park where I did my normal icing, sit-ups and leg strengthening exercises on my left leg. Right now, I can't do too much on my right leg.

My spirits were really high on Saturday after I did a little work in the Swim-Ex. I was able to do some much-needed cardio, which was very encouraging. On Sunday, I did the same thing. I made another step forward in improving the strength in my leg and my knee on Monday the 18th. It's a slow process, but nothing means more to me than being out on the field with my teammates, so I have to do my best to get healthy. I would much rather be on the field entertaining the fans than doing rehab.

Some fans were asking about what I do after rehab. My day starts at 6 a.m. and I finish with rehab around 12 or 1 p.m. I then go home and take a nap. After I wake up, I eat and take care of baseball-related work. This also involves answering emails, which I have a lot of fun doing. Right now, I'm taking the time to answer fan mail because once I get back on the field, my free time will be nonexistent! In between all the business, I talk with my family -- they are the most important thing in my life. Another hobby I really enjoy is exploring my creative side in the area of digital painting. Jeremy Sutton, the author of Painter IX Creativity, is working with me. Jeremy, Tony and I are working on some design pieces which will be incorporated into the new website design, that is coming soon.

Barry Bonds

April 11, 2005

Hello Fans,

Where should I start? Opening Day was just phenomenal. The way the fans responded to me as Jon announced the line up was truly overwhelming. April 5th will go down as a memorable day for me. Words can not express the gratitude I feel from that reception. I would like my fans to know the appreciation and support shown to me as a player makes me want to get back even more.

Here is a little behind the scenes footage that Tony took Opening Day for you all to see. This is before the 7th MVP award Ceremony: 56K | 350K

Thank you for the support and I will see you soon. Keep those e-mails coming.

Barry Bonds

Winners of a signed Barry Bonds Item:
January: Michael Hamburg
February: Shan Serran
March: Leonard Cohen

March 23, 2005

Thinking back on it, I should have reversed the surgery and had the right knee done first. At the time, the left one was a little bit more irritated than the right one. So I did the one that felt worse first. But I probably should have switched it.

When I'm running bases, my right is my push off leg. Every turn I make, I push off my right leg. So actually, I really have to take my time now. My right leg has to be stronger than my left for me to come back.

There's a fatigue factor in the rehab and the workouts. I'm 40 and at my age there's exercises I just don't feel like I want to do anymore. My wife has even been saying to me, "There's going to come a time, Barry, when you don't have to do this. You've dedicated your entire life to this. You go from the gym to the house to the ballpark and back again."

My family has been incredibly supportive of me because playing baseball is what I've always wanted to do. But there has to come a time when I take some of this (muscular) weight off and forget what other people think or want me to do.

If I want to live until I'm 80 years old, I'm going to have to become a leaner-type, cardio-type individual who keeps his heart rate up. I'm not going to fight that losing battle against my weight when I'm retired and my metabolism slows down.

My family cares about me being healthy. They want me to be healthy when I'm 50, 70 years old. They want me to think about the long term. They make a valid point. I'm going to be 41 this year. They ask me: "Are you going to keep beating yourself up?"

But all that's for a little bit down the road. Right now, I'm just trying to get back on the field. I don't care about this whole record thing. I just care about doing the best job that I can. It's hard, man, when baseball is all I've ever known and all I've ever done, to hit the switch and dim the lights a little bit.

Barry

March 14, 2005

It's all about being patient right now with my right leg. I've been working really hard, but I can't overdo it. I push and I push and then I have to back off. Take a couple of days off. You don't want to get too fatigued where you're overworking it and then you suffer a setback.

Right now it's just taking a little longer to recover, that's all. (Trainer) Stan Conte said the other day that I might be three-to-four weeks away from full strength. If you're talking about a 21-year-old, probably. At my age, it's not that easy right now.

I worked hard last week, batting, throwing, running. Then I took a couple of recovery days. Sunday I worked a little bit. Hit in the batting cages. Monday I'll have completely off. Tuesday we'll get started again, try to take it to another level.

I haven't gotten to that full tilt of running. I just don't have the strength that I need in my upper leg, the quadriceps and hamstring. I can run, but I feel like if I push it too far I'm going to go backwards. And I don't want to go backwards. If I run and afterwards my leg looks good, then that's a good sign.

I haven't had any swelling in the knee. I haven't had any soreness. It's just this muscle, the quad. I have to get this muscle strong. If that muscle doesn't catch up, what happens is you're putting more pressure on the knee joint. When I get this muscle strong and I'm not pounding on the knee, that's when I'm ready. I've got to get it back firing the way it's supposed to fire.

In baseball, there's so much stop, go, stop, go. If that muscle isn't working right, that one stop is going to blow the knee out. That's what I'm protecting. I don't need it to blow out.

I'm just trying to get in that lineup by Opening Day. If I can get in the lineup by Opening Day, I'll take my Spring Training month in April. I can do it even if I don't play an inning this spring. They might have to pull me out of the game early. I might have to play one day and take off the next day. That way, May through October will actually be my season.

That's where I'm at right now. It's not definite at this point, but it could happen. I always think the worst and if I do better, it's a plus.

Barry

March 7, 2005

I'll be there. I'll be on the field and in the lineup on Opening Day. I think that's fair to say. Based on the way my right knee is feeling right now, I'll be ready.

I don't think I've ever missed an Opening Day. I'd take Opening Day and go back on the disabled list or something. But I don't want to miss Opening Day. It's important because I've been out there year after year after year. This will be my 20th, and that means a lot to me. Not to be there Opening Day, not to be there through the whole parade thing, with all the guys, with the whole adrenaline thing going, just to sit there and watch it would really break me down.

My knee is getting there. I had surgery on it before Spring Training, but it's starting to improve. I had a little setback again last week. I shouldn't have hit on the field. I was doing fine in the cage. But I just wanted to be out there with my teammates and I kind of pushed myself a little bit, aggravated the knee a little bit.

Stan Conte, our trainer, convinced me that I really needed to allow it to take its course. We're too early in Spring Training. If it was the same guys we had last year I probably wouldn't think about it that much. But we have Mike Matheny, Omar Vizquel and Moises Alou over here, and I want to be out there with them, try to figure out what we can do for each other, what Omar's range is. All those little things you need to do to become a team.

But really, I have to just focus on my rehab. I'm not frustrated at all. I'm making great progress. I have to strengthen the leg now. That's the only thing that's weak -- the whole leg, because of atrophy in the muscles. That's the key. Hitting, you put a lot of torque on your knees, you put a lot of torque on your legs. That's been my breadwinner my whole career -- my legs.

It'll probably be another week before I'm in the outfield, taking fly balls. On the bases, running and stopping. I have a deadline in my head for getting back out there. I'm not superstitious, but I don't want to jinx myself by revealing it right now, just in case I don't make it.

I have it set in my mind when I want to go do more drills and do more things. It'll be before the end of Spring Training, that's for sure. I'm going to be ready by April 5. That's the key.

Barry

February 28, 2005

I would love to have a good relationship with the media. I would love to let the reporters have what they want. But every time I've taken two steps forward, they've taken two steps backward. Every time I try to give them what they want, there's something else they're trying to find or make me say that's negative.

I'm a human being. I'm not perfect. I'm not going to be perfect.

But don't just jump on me every chance you get, because I don't satisfy your need at the moment. That's not fair to me as a person.

Since the press conference last week I've been reading what people have written, the little spins they've been trying to put on it. But I spoke that day from the heart. A lot of the things I said were bottled up all winter. The questions came, and the answers just came flowing out.

I'm not weighing it right now. To me, if it isn't one thing about Barry Bonds, they'll find something else. That's just the way it is and that's the sports world. But like I said at the press conference, they're professionals. They're just doing their jobs and I have respect for that.

But the game is the game, and sports is sports. Let us all play the game and let us do our thing. Let us excite the fans. That's all we as athletes can do. We're not out there trying to change the world or anything. We're just out there trying to entertain people. We're also not going out there to try to embarrass ourselves or embarrass our sports.

We take pride in that. We have a love and passion for what we do just like other people have a love and passion for their jobs. But we're not trying to put anyone down. Don't put us down.

There have been things that happened in all of sports, in our society, in our world that we've all had some problems and issues about. Some are more serious than others. But to repeat and repeat and repeat -- what's the point? It needs to stop. It needs to come to an end.

What's gone on has gone on. What's trying to become better needs to be allowed to get better. We're all human beings. We all make mistakes. We all do. All of us. It's time to just fix it and move on. That way, we can all have a good relationship together.

Barry

February 22, 2005

What a day. I arrived here in Arizona this afternoon for Spring Training. I'm a bit tired today because my wife and I attended the premiere of my good friend Tyler Perry's new movie "Diary of a Mad Black Woman." It's a great movie and everybody should check it out.

After a late lunch I drove to Scottsdale Stadium for a 3:30 p.m. press conference. I have posted the transcripts on my site so you can read what I said in its entirety without any media spin.

I'm really excited about the upcoming season with all the new additions to our team.

I'd better sign off since tomorrow is my first full day of camp.

Thanks again for all your e-mails of support.

Barry

February 10, 2005

Hello fans,

Well, the time has come for me to get back to work as Spring Training is right around the corner . Since the start of the off-season I have been training. This last week, I have been in rehab everyday . During the winter I have spent my weekends and down time doing some fun things like hanging with my kids, taking pictures and making movies.

The week of January 12-16, I was at the Michael Jordan Celebrity Invitational in the Bahamas. I wish I could tell you my handicap, but let's just say I had a fun time. Also while I was there, I donated $20,000 on behalf of the Barry Bonds Family Foundation to the Bahamas Red Cross to assist in relief efforts to the islands that were hit by Hurricane Frances and Hurricane Jeanne. With the building of my vacation home there, I have come to know and respect the Bahamian people and their great culture - this is a small way for me to show my appreciation for their hospitality and to continue to help rebuild the community.

The weekend of the 22nd and 23rd of January, Tony and I spent taking pictures and shooting some DV footage with my new XL2 camera. He showed me how to use Final Cut Pro HD and IDVD. Click on the link to see my first editing job, which isn’t too bad for a first timer. I have to say, I will get much better as the season goes. In my little movie called “Barry's San Francisco,” I will take you on a small tour of Pier 39. The fans were fun and surprised to see me at the Pier shooting and taking pictures. Below are a few pictures from my shoot. Keep an eye out for Tony and me - you never know where we will pop up in the city shooting footage.

The weekend of January 29 and 30, I had a signing for a few items to sell on the web site. I also selected the first winner (Michael Hamburg) of 12 who will receive a signed product from me . Keep those emails coming because I select one winner each month from all the messages I receive.

Good news - when the season starts I will have game used items in the store for all my fans. We should have a few items for you to see next week.

Until the next update,
Barry

January 10, 2005

Hi, To my family, friends and fans, Happy New Year and I wish you happiness, health and all the best for 2005. I just got back from vacation in Aspen where I spent a lot of time with my family and friends. Last week the weather was great, so we took in some fun in the snow.

I wasn't on the computer much, but I do know that I have a lot of e-mails to return. I want to say thank you for the well wishes and I will start answering e-mails and giving shout outs.

Just some highlights from last month.

ARod and I were in New York on Dec. 10 and 11 for the Ultimate Experience Weekend. I met a lot of great fans and spent time talking with them at the Friday night reception. I would like to thank Jay-Z and especially Desiree for helping put together the signing on Saturday at the 40/40 Club, along with the Sponsors, and the Bonds and ARod teams respectfully. This gave me another opportunity to meet more fans and take a few pictures with them in such a unique and cool environment.

I know a lot of you have e-mailed over the past year about trading cards. This year I will have a baseball card. Topps has already started producing my cards for 2005 which will appear in packs with all the other players. This week, I approved many items from Topps and I have to say that I'm very happy with the product line for the fans.

What's up for this month?

I just started training again and I'm feeling great. But like everyone, I have to work off a little holiday cheer and a slight cold. Next, back to my e-mails and website. Rachael, Lisa, JB and Tony have some great ideas for the fans for this year, so I'll be going over it all.

Next week I'll be attending Michael Jordan's charity golf tournament.

Later,
Barry