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Editor's note: This was to be published yesterday, but it is still relevant now that the news is that Bonds will be coming to Miami. -MJ
According to a variety of sources, noted funny man/greatest hitter of all-time Barry Bonds could very well be on his way to impart knowledge to all the young Fish on this side of the pond. Frisaro:
Also hearing Barry Bonds/Frank Menechino lined up to be #Marlins hitting coaches as @JonHeymanCBS reports. Juan Nieves pitching coach
— Joe Frisaro (@JoeFrisaro) November 30, 2015
Yes, you read that right. Not only do they wish to bring Frank Menechino back in as hitting coach, they wish to add Barry Bonds to the staff in the exact same capacity.
It should be of no surprise that the Marlins would consider something like this. They were the team, after all, that inserted their GM into the dugout last year after a month and a half's worth of games. Unlike that lamented move, however, this actually has a chance at paying dividends. For despite the controversy surrounding Bonds and the near surety that he used performance enhancing drugs whilst racking up homerun records, there is no question that he is/was among the greatest hitters in baseball history, and that he has something to teach Marlins hitters when it comes to the strikezone. Bonds spent last season as a special instructor for his long time team, the San Fransisco Giants. He also worked with Alex Rodriguez and Dexter Fowler in the off-season, both of whom ended up having productive seasons.
There is also the precedent of Mark McGwire, another '90s-'00's slugger with ties to performance enhancing drugs, having successfully transitioned to coaching, first with the St. Louis Cardinals and more recently under Don Mattingly with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Nothing is set in stone yet, but you can at least start imagining the possibilities: The all time homerun leader paired up with arguably the best young power hitter in the game, who, as we all know, is Derek Dietrich. Or maybe the Marlins can sneak him in as a DH in interleague play. Whatever the case, I think Christina De Nicola sums it up best:
Ichiro, Don Mattingly and Barry Bonds possibly in the same dugout? 2016 could be a wild year. #Marlins pic.twitter.com/ca4rBnoFCF
— Christina De Nicola (@CDeNicola13) November 30, 2015