Barry Bonds 756th home run actually takes the controversial slugger out of the spotlight somewhat after more than a year of non stop scrutiny. By contrast, Nationals pitcher Mike Bacsik has the opportunity to step into the spotlight and that's why I believe he wanted to give up Barry Bonds record setting home run. Bacsik has been a journeyman pitcher, teetering on the edge of major league baseball for years. The Nationals only have Bacsik because of some injuries and the fact that they didnt want to spend any money on big name pitching this year. So here is Mike Bacsik sitting at a press conference answering a barrage of questions about his pitching. This is a guy who nobody outside of DC had even heard of so why not get his name out there. Former major leaguer Mike Morgan pitched for 12 different major league teams over 2 decades. Did you know that before Barry Bonds set the single season home run mark, Morgan gave up Mark McGwire's homerun that tied Roger Maris' record? That moment probably bought Morgan 4 more seasons with 3 more Major League teams because he got noticed again. Mike Bacsik's father faced Hank Aaron and denied the hall of famer of a home run some 31 years ago. Mike Bacsik is already promoting the fact that he can do baseball card shows with Al Downing who gave up Aaron's 715th homer passing Babe Ruth. So congratulations to Mike Bacsik. You got your moment in the spotlight and the opportunity to cash in on it. May you pitch for years to come and next time you face Bonds, you can strike him out.

Labels: Executive Producer NBC4 Sports, Jeff Greenberg