Bobby Bonds Jr. Not Burdened By Name

WILMINGTON, Del. - It could be a heavy burden to bear, looking across the dinner table and seeing greatness, then turning to the side and seeing even more. Your father made it and now his oldest son is making it bigger, yet your time hasn't come.

But Bobby Bonds Jr. shows neither scars nor fears. He merely listens to the mention of his famous family and he smiles. He is Bobby Bonds' son and Barry Bonds' brother, yet he is 25 years old and beginning his fourth pro baseball season and is a reserve in Class A.

The name stands out on the new Wilmington Blue Rocks roster, just as it did in school, on his Little League teams and in everything he tried.

But, Bonds insists, it does not add pressure to his quest.

"It's just a name, like yours is just a name," he said after a workout at Frawley Stadium. "It's not my fault my brother and my dad made it."

Mostly, the comparisons are with his brother, the San Francisco Giants star who was the National League MVP in 1990, '92 and '93. Bobby Jr. handles them with good nature and says they are not fair because while he did not play baseball from the time he was 14 until college, Barry always wanted to be a baseball star. They also are not fair, he says, because he is not Barry.

He will talk about physical similarities, for they are why the Kansas City Royals drafted him out of the San Diego Padres system in December.

"My brother has quick hands, but mine are a little slower," Bobby Jr. said. "We play the same game, though. We're both hard workers, but he has more experience. I haven't played as much. I just want to get to where he is."

Bobby Jr., who at 6 feet 4 is three inches taller than the 30-year-old Barry, drifted from baseball in high school. Actually, he bolted from it. He admits now that, "I thought I was too good to have to practice," and chose not to join the Redwood (Calif.) High team. He instead turned his attention to the martial arts, idolizing Bruce Lee instead of baseball players.

It wasn't until after college that he regained his love for the sport. He remembers working out one day in Bradenton, Fla., with Barry and his Pittsburgh Pirates teammates Bobby Bonilla and Andy Van Slyke and feeling a "spark."

"It was fun again," he said. He played at Canada (Calif.) College and then was picked by San Diego in the 18th round of the 1992 free agent draft. He has spent every year since then playing catchup.

He has the long, lean body of his brother and father, and huge hands to match. He is considered by the Royals to be a phenomenal defensive talent who needs to improve his hitting.

Rocks manager John Mizerock conceded the organization would like Bonds to be further along at age 25, adding that Bonds "has the very beginning of what it takes to be a good baseball player."