Friday, September 02, 2005
Gambling site's donation of Bonds' ball turned down by HOF
By LARRY McSHANE
Associated Press Writer
September 2, 2005, 3:54 PM EDT
NEW YORK -- Here's a sure bet: Barry Bonds' 700th home run ball won't go on display at the Baseball Hall of Fame anytime soon.
The Cooperstown repository for baseball history this week rejected a proposed donation of the ball from an online gambling operation. Sportsbook.com purchased the ball from Bonds' famous blast for $102,000 at a June auction.
According to the company, the ball was offered with no strings attached to the Hall's executive board. But Hall of Fame spokesman Jeff Idelson said Friday that turning down the deal was an obvious decision.
"The Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum will never accept artifacts from any person or company known to be involved with gambling," Idelson said. "We have a responsibility to preserve the game's history.
"We would not intentionally compromise its integrity when there are other ways to tell the history of this milestone."
Bonds, with his Sept. 17, 2004, homer, joined home run king Henry Aaron (755) and Babe Ruth (714) as the only players in major league history to break the 700-homer mark.
The San Francisco Giants star has already donated several items from his career to the hall, including the spikes from his 400th steal, the bat from his 526th homer and the ball from his 532nd home run.
Idelson, who has worked at the hall for 11 years, said he can recall no prior incident when the facility turned down an artifact because of a link to sports betting.
Baseball has studiously avoided the taint of gambling since the 1919 Black Sox scandal. Pete Rose's betting career has kept the sport's all-time hits leader from getting a plaque at the Hall of Fame. Two other baseball greats, Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays, were suspended from the game after they took jobs as greeters for two Atlantic City casinos.
"The cardinal rule in baseball is you don't gamble," said Idelson. "It's been posted in every clubhouse since 1927."
Sportsbook.com, a London-based online gambling company, said it planned to hold onto the ball in the hopes that changing times and attitudes might clear the way for its inclusion with the Hall's priceless collection.
"We are very disappointed that the Hall of Fame has turned down our offer, though we are not completely surprised," said Alex Czajkowski, marketing director for Sportsbook.com. "We understand and respect the Hall of Fame's position."
