Hall of Fame catcher Johnny Bench joins the Dan Patrick Show and reacts to Barry Bonds' comments that he's been vindicated and should be in the Baseball Hall of Fame
Johnny Bench is one of the greatest, classiest, players of all time. He's one of the reasons I got into, fell in love, and still love baseball, today!! BIG RED MACHINE FOREVER⚾️⚾️⚾️⚾️⚾️⚾️⚾️⚾️⚾️⚾️⚾️
@thomasluby1754 Johnny was at a Reds Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony recently, and a Past Reds GM from the 1950's who was Jewish,and is Deceased, was one of the inductees, and His Daughter was there as His Representative!,This GM was known for Putting together a Pretty Good Ball Clubs during his tenure with Not Much Money,compared to other clubs around the league at that time!,and Johnny Bench said well of course he did,He was Jewish!!!,The Old Antisemitic Trope that All Jews are Penny pinchers and Mizers!!!,Pretty Sad,that John made that Antisemitic Remark,and Made this Ceremony all about him,because of it!!!
Johnny's right Babo used unknowiingly which was disclosed during a grand jury hearing he did admit using the clear and the cream and he got it from his trainer Greg Anderson who got it from BALCO no Bonds should not be in the Hall.
With runners on 2nd & 3rd, Bench after the pitch would from his crouch throw to 2nd to attempt a pickoff. 2nd basemen & shortstops had to be ready. Bench lead & managed. One of the most (if not the most) confident players & men I had the the privilege to watch play & speak. Curt Gowdy said that about Ted Williams & also spoke that way of Bench saying often " At this young age, this man is polished"!
Absolutely as a player. What he did was as a manager. He got banned but he already had his hof career as a player. Listen to Bench, he says he wouldve loved to have performance enhancing supps for recovery also. Its always been in the sport since the 20s. If you think players didnt use uppers after partying all night plus they had to travel by train.
Johnny Bench is The Greatest MLB Catcher of All Time!!!, but as a Person to just Regular Fans, He's always been a Real DICK!!!,and has always came across as He's Above Everyone Else!!!
Being from and growing up in Cincinnati, I didn't understand the magnitude of witnessing Johnny Bench play the game of ⚾, like I do now, what a privilege it was...
Me too! My favorite sports memories are being at the Gardens watching Oscar Robertson play for the Royals and at Riverfront watching the Reds in the early to mid 70’s
Best catcher I've ever seen, got his autograph at Chain O Lakes ball park in Winter Haven FL.. Been aphillies fan all my life, and will never forget the big red machine and all those studs they had. Thanks mr. Bench for your many years of service to the game that we all love. Thanks again!!!!
Imagine the battering his body took over the years, catching all those games wore him down. I was a catcher and I played into my 30's in an unlimited league, well two total knee replacements later and I know catching all those games wore my knees out.
Most of the 1979 Pittsburgh Pirates team was also using every drug and steriod in the book and according to John The Hammer Milner were given to the players by Willie Stargell of all people
And , YET . The White Sox owner had NO part to play in that event ! But , he & Landis are IN the HOF ? Didn't Cobb & Speaker get caught betting & still played & made the HOF , too ? Like Johnny is talking about in the 1970's , the trainers knew way back when . So the trainers , MG & team owner of the Yankees , didn't [ KNOW ] about 1/2 of there teams was user's ? While they WERE winning all those titles in the late 1990's to early 2000's ? I wouldn't be surprised to fine out , EVEN Jeter wasn't using way back then ? David Ortiz , was a story out about him in his Country , using . BUT, nothing ever come out of it & HE"S in on his 1st try ? Funny on how Base Ball IS held way above all OTHER PRO SPORTS in this topic ? Bet , you couldn't field teams in the NFL , if it ever come out like it did for Base Ball !
The thing with Bonds is he did cheat and he was a selfish nasty person. However you can't deny he was a HOF type player before he ever used. It's known he watched the country go cray over Maguire and Sosa hitting HRs which made him decide to do it. Does he deserve the records? That's a fair question. He deserves to be in the HOF.
And you wouldn't be in the HOF due to your cheating. Bench looks uncomfortable talking about it. He doesn't want to slam on the players. Bonds ain't getting in because of his doping and lying about his doping. None of the cheaters are getting in. That includes many of my heroes. It's a tainted era of baseball that needs to be washed clean.
@@bigboxes How many cheaters do you think are in the Hall? Whitey Ford was a KNOWN and ADMITTED cheater. So were BOTH Niekro brothers. They may not have been juicing themselves but they were juicing the ball and that's CHEATING - you don't get to decide which cheating is worse. Cheating is cheating. So WHITEY and Niekro should be kicked out then by your logic. So should any of the guys in the fifties when AMPHETAMINE USE was RAMPANT and guys like Mays and Mantle were doped to the gills. You think, what basically amounts to coke, doesn't help you focus. ANYTHING that is NOT LEGAL and gives you an edge is CHEATING. You can't have one standard for these guys and another standard for others. Mantle and Mays, Ford and Niekro should either get kicked out or have asterisks by their names if it comes down to your logic.
Bonds had 3 MVP’s before he’s believed to have used steroids. He’s the most dominant athlete of all time. Him not being in the HOF is an absolute joke.
If you believe his power output was natural, I've got some ocean front property in Arkansas for a good price. Pete Rose was denied because he was betting on the game but those who used drugs to enhance their play is cool. I don't understand your brainwaves.@@SarahGlass-hd6zp
Compare Bonds with David Ortiz. Ortiz comes across as likeable and media friendly. The kind of guy that greets every fan who encounters him. Ortiz was also mentioned in the Mitchell Report. Bonds was never media friendly and came across (still does) as abrasive. Bonds pre or post steroid use was the fair superior player, yet Ortiz is in the Hall. Go figure.
There was a time if u threw a strike to Barry it was in the stands for mr he is without a doubt the greatest power hitter of all time. Curt Shilling is without a doubt the greatest big game pitcher of all time also. Maybe not enough wins but damn dude won every big game
From 2003 through his last game in 2016 Ortiz never tested positive for any drug. He went 14 seasons in his prime without failing one drug test. Yet people all say he was juiced. Why? Because he was clutch. For no other reason.
The Cubs scout wanted Bench but was over ruled by senior personnel director back then. Unfortunately…. Even with Bench they would not have gotten over the top in the late sixties early seventies.
When I was a limo driver, I had a HOF pitcher in my car and he basically said the same thing. The players were given things by the club and told to take it and they did.
Put All those Guys in the Cooperstown Baseball Hall of Fame. If They have to put a Asterisk ✳️ by Their Name, Because for the Era These Guys did Show Up Every Day, and Participated in Every Game and at Bats in All these Ballparks, their Accomplishments Speaks for itself.
Exactly! My gawd Bench has lots of opinions on lots of MLB topics...yeah Rose was gross but did his time and still was Charlie Hustle doesn't change his playing years nor these jacked batters...whatever it's part of the mix
The hall fame is not only a record of the best players but a historical record of the game. The good, the bad, the ugly and everything in between. Tell the truth. Rose, Bonds, Clemens. Rodriguez, etc. should all be in for what they did on the field. They are part of that history. Tell the story, tell the truth.
Im a lifetime Astros fan since the 1970’s and Jonny Bench was my favorite player, I always had hoped he would be traded to the Astros but that never happened and I always had his baseball cards too as a child growing up
Give Us a Break ! “ Pete Rose 🌹 “ should be in the “ Hall of Fame” MLB is in the gambling business and NFL, and NBA and all Professional Sports it’s a crock of bull shot players are paid obscene wages for illiteracy
I agree, Pete Rose should be in the HOF he's baseball's all time hits leader w 4,256 hits. If the HOF is gonna keep Rose out for all these years Then keep Barry out. Nobody will ever break Rose's all time hits record and that's a shame because he deserves to be in there. With that said they should just do away with the HOF because it's a JOKE...
@@raymondmontanez9284 precisely pound for pound would walk through “ hell “ in a gasoline ⛽️ suit just to play baseball ⚾️ MLB is rigged hypocrisy organization they have to submit the roster 10 minutes before game time at the MGM Grand I never watch it anymore
@@garymorris1856 I disagree Pete Rose is the hit king, the man has the record. Keeping Pete Rose out of the Hall of Fame just not right, it’s like voting for Biden not right
Johnny Bench was one of the first names I could recognize as a sports star, even before I started following the game...of course he did a great spray paint commercial back in the day - "I'm Johnny Bench, and this is Johnny Bench's bench!"
People forget that genetics play a huge roll plus peds plus diet plus weight lifting program plus he was already #1 so people got hurt when he turned super human everybody was cheating for at least from 80s to early 2000s just stop
C'mon, Joe Jackson was vindicated too. While many of these drugs were legal as far as the feds were concerned, they were against the rules of baseball. If we are going to put Bonds and Arod and a few others who blew up like blimps, then let's put in Pete Rose, too, and definitely Joe Jackson.
Grew up a big red machine fan. Loved Bench. Best catcher I've ever seen. That said, amphetamines doesn't make a 30 HR a year guy a 70 HR a year guy....so no. He shouldn't be in the HOF because he's a cheat. And the outcry over Rose not being in the HOF is misdirected. The outcry should be why he wasn't put in jail for an inappropriate relationship with a minor.
Johnny was, and still is IMO, the best catcher in MLB history. It's hard to fathom that he'll be turning 76 this year. When I was a little kid back in the 70s, I wrote a letter to the Reds to tell them that Johnny Bench was my favorite player on my favorite team. I have no idea how the letter got to the Reds' offices, because I lived several states away, and am pretty sure I had no idea what their address was, other than that they were in Cincinnati. But somebody at the Post Office saw to it that it got there, and a few weeks later I got back in the mail from the Reds a Johnny Bench photo, autographed by Johnny himself. Talk about a treasured possession for a little kid. Only autograph I ever got. Only autograph I ever wanted.
A court of Major League Baseball is different from any other court. If it wasn’t then “Shoeless” Joe Jackson would’ve played a whole lot longer and added to what was already a hall of fame career.
Growing up in Dallas area we had no baseball until 70s. I loved the Reds. Followed them closely. These guys remind me of 2023 World Series Champs. Texas Rangers. I was in awe of Johnny Bench. He might go 0~4 but then hit one out in ninth to win. Definition of a Baseball hero. Even in retirement he is still a class act. I can’t imagine what he put his body thru to play so many games per year. Congrats Ohio, you guys have a legend. We had Pudge Rodriguez back about the time Bench retired. How can a team go all the way without a guy like this at catcher. I believe Reds are going to have a breakthrough season. They have assembled the talent. I felt same way last year about the Rangers and they broke thru. Hope to see Cincinnati fans next October in World Series, in Dallas Fort Worth.
O.J. Simpson was "vindicated" too. Commen sense still tells anyone with half a brain that they cheated. Pete Rose was never accused of gambling on baseball during his playing career when he became the all-time hits leader. He was never gonna be a HoF manager, but as a player, where's his vindication.
What Rose did was so wrong that I would erase him from the record books. Unless he can show that he bet the same amount each night and every night, that means there were games the manager cared more about than others. Did Rose make pitching changes to win or to save his bullpen for the next night? Did I pay for a ticket to a game where my team competed at the highest level? If you have to ask that question, Baseball becomes no different than WWE. This goes to the very core of what sport is. Rose's actions are unforgivable.
@curtismartin2866 I agree, Rose's actions as a manager were disgraceful, he should never be allowed to manage again. How exactly does his actions as manager effect what he accomplished as a player, where there were never any gambling allegations rendered against him in his playing days. People need to learn to separate the two VERY DIFFERENT careers.
@@pnelly5772 I do not separate them. I think that what he did as a manager obliterates what he did as a player. I would seriously remove all trace of Pete Rose from the record book. I realize I'm on the extreme end, but there can be zero tolerance for calling the very integrity of competition into question.
Pete Rose had (and probably still does) a gambling problem. Most individuals who are affected by that disease do it for the action more than the monetary results. And he doesn't appear to be the type of person who seeks help because that would be an admission he is weak. However, after saying that and understanding how professional sports have corrupted themselves by allowing open gambling on their sports, he should be vindicated and included in the Hall if he would come out and swear openly (or even take a lie detector test) that he never bet on the other team or did anything to disrupt managing a major league baseball team so that it could perform at the highest level of play possible. Personally, I don't like the guy but if he only bet on the Reds, then let him in.
@@RobertDeMartin No. If Pete bet $100 on the Reds to win on Friday and bet $250 on the Reds to win on Sunday, what happens on Saturday? Was Pete betting more on Sunday because he knew his Bullpen was rested? Or that he gave his Right Fielder the night off on Saturday so he'd be ready for Sunday? Unless he bet the exact same amount to win on each game, there are just too many questions. If I save up to take my family to our one trip to see the Reds that year, and we happen to go on Saturday, is the Manager sandbagging so he makes back his Friday losses with an all out effort on Sunday? Now we're messing with the very thing that sets sports apart from other forms of entertainment.
He might have been trying to say he took a greenie (Amphetamines ) which are now banned so why judge players who took something before they were banned.
U weren't listening.He said it should bother Barry because of how good he was before he(allegedly)took PEDs and because of how many others took them.I agree with the guy that said he should be in the HOF and just put asterisks next to his stats the years he used illegal PEDs.He was definately the best hitter in the league for years.
But if you're going to put asterisks next the stats he used PEDs, then asterisks need to go also on other players who used them if they decide to let them in as well. Also pitchers juiced more than the players, but nobody cares about taking away their stats. Baseball should have put in testing in the 90's and they wouldn't be dealing with this situation. You wanna know why A-rod doesn't have 700 or 800 hrs, because there was testing in place and he failed two test therefore he was suspended twice. That's how you eliminate the asterisks talking points.
To me personally Johnny Bench is the best all-around catcher in baseball history eventhough Carlton Fisk is my favorite back stop ... much respect and admiration for Johnny Bench 👍👍
Johnny is right about one important aspect: GNC did actually sell steroid-infused supplements for over a decade before the FDA stepped in. Even high school kids inadvertently were using.
Not just amphetamines. Steroids were widely available in MLB clubhouses at least two decades before Barry Bonds, according to a government study cited in the Mitchell Report.
Bonds should be in the Hall of fame, but his plaque should have a footnote saying he juiced. Rose should have a plaque with a footnote saying he bet on baseball.
2009, Lakers vs Kings in Sac. Barry arriving late and walking behind the baseline behind the hoop where Kobe's at the line shooting FTs. Laker fans chanting "M-V-P!" ... Barry assumes the chants are for him, smiles wide and starts waving to the crowd with both hand 🤣🤣🤣 He doesn't need the Hall; he has his own world.
We’re you there? You don’t know why he was waving & smiling. Someone/ people’s could have actually called his name out & cheered him on. So please stop reporting your fake news!
I agree with Johnny. You can be vindicated and keep your stats and salary from using, but the Hall of Fame is an all-time comparative standard of greatness. Bonds was on his way to getting there, but his use tainted that.
The fact he still won't admit it is the problem. Baseball has proven, if you own up to the cheating, we can look past it, but the denial when the evidence is in front of our eyes is infuriating
Nobody has benefited from admitting to anything that the other side has no physical proof of. Period. Pete Rose isn't in, McGwire isn't in, Sosa isn't in, Palmeiro isn't in, Clemens isn't in, Pettitte isn't in, A-Rod isn't in. Only questionable one there is McGwire because all he did was hit home runs, and they all admitted to drug use when they got caught. Except Pete, who admitted to gambling.
A panel of 36 members of the Baseball Writers' Association of America voted Bench as the catcher for Major League Baseball's All-Time Team. I'd say that's about the highest recognition one could have.
If the best players from the Selig era aren't in, Bud really shouldn't be in Cooperstown either. He and the game implicitly condoned PED use (at the very least).
@@ronchapsky6467 I AGEE 1000% with your comment . BUT, The White Sox owner & Landis are in the HOF , along with at least a couple of OTHER ALL - TIME greats ?
Bonds should only be added after Pete Rose is added. I saw an ad for a gambling venue located at the Reds' ballpark. If baseball is now profiting from gambling, Rose should be forgiven.
Rose flat-out lied for 15 years about betting on baseball, and when he finally admitted that the only bets he made were as a manager, evidence appeared that even that wasn't the complete truth. If he had publicly told the truth on day one, he would have been forgiven, and he'd probably be in the HOF today. He's a POS who deserves to be nowhere near Cooperstown.
Barry Bonds should absolutely be in the Hall of Fame. Pitchers use different things to increase spin rate all the time. Let’s ban all professional athletes from doing any exercise. After all, it has to be natural, right
Yes indeed and remember that when he came to bat most of the time he only got one pitch to hit. Pitchers would nibble at the strike zone and a good eye was the only way to hit, not drugs!
I doubt it. I believe he started using PEDs around 1990 or sooner. Only about 4 or 5 seasons into his career. Without the juice, he hits half the HRs and retires 10 years sooner.
@@TimCarter ..that was the talk of many reporters back in the day. His stats spoke for themselves but he got greedy and along with that an unusually Large Head.
Barry Bonds was a hall of farmer before he was accused of taking steroids which was never proven. Comparing Barry Bonds to OJ shows a serious lack of mental acuity on your part. We’re you dropped on your head at birth or is it an hereditary flaw?
@@harveyhorwitz1346 "Hereditary flaw"? How 'bout writing 'We’re you dropped on your head...'? Being the MENSA member that you are, you know that reads as "WE ARE YOU DROPPED ON YOUR HEAD..."
Johnny Bench in my opinion, is one of the greatest catchers of all time. He hitting was great, and he was superb behind the plate. For Bonds and Sosa and the others didn't need the steroids and other enhancing drugs. Again, Mr. Bench was great!
Andro (not to be confused with Anadrol 50) was not classified as a steroid until 2004. McGwire was using it before it was a classified as such, so keeping him out of the HOF for Andro is questionable. Another thing is we have no idea how many guys in the HOF consumed steroids. In 2000 a friend and myself took Andro for 30 days and the results were crazy good.
The problem with McGwire is that if you take out his four peak seasons, he is not a Hall of Famer. I'm no Barry Bonds fan, but he would have easily made the HoF without steroids, so I'm ok if he eventually gets in. If people want to complain that is a stain on the game, well, it is already there.
Baseball was trying to recover from the 94 Strike, next thing you know; fans are coming back because of the Homer's. Bench was the greatest catcher of all time!
In the Hall, but out of organized ball. There's a reason for the rule, even when you only bet on your team to win. There's another side to that. Pete was the Manager. On the games you didn't bet on, if you need your closer to go an extra inning, will you let him tire himself out, even though you might need him in tomorrow's game, the one you did bet on?
I was listening to DP on radio the day they talked to Canseco about his upcoming book. DP begged Jose to keep quiet & let the public believe their Heroes were all clean. Sucks when the truth is Bad for Business.
My favorite baseball team as a kid and most of the kids I was playing with the big red machine 😮, I love ❤️ Dan Patrick what a true sports reporter should be doing , give me my sports news with out the politics , when espn was so fun to watch 😮and a must 😮
For those of you who think these guys who juiced should be in the HOF, I am curious how you feel about Lance Armstrong. Should he be given back everything he lost? You have to draw an accountability line somewhere, even if you love the person.
@@William_J.83 Okay, but what about Pete Rose and his gambling problem and betting on his own team. That wasn't legal. People who have gambling addictions are more likely to gamble in a nefarious manner. As a player, he was great, but it stops there.
@@michaeltamares7974 You are correct, Lance Armstrong raised LOTS of money for cancer research and I applaud him for that. The question is whether or not it was justifiable to defraud everyone, including the other athletes who played by the rules. This was their life long dream to win a Tour de France. Secondly, do you really think Lance's sole motivation was raising money for cancer research or was it for fame and lining his own pockets? The motivation seems a little wobbly.
They should vote Bonds, Rose, Clemens, McGuire all in same year. Not hide behind what they did but seperate the moral judgement from baseball accomplishment worthiness.
Is there a painting of a very old Johnny Bench in his attic?!?! Holy cow! That guy hasn't aged in 30 years - he still looks like he did in the late 90's!!!
What Makes me Pissed off at this whole situation is the fact that every single one of everybody's Home Run still counts Mcguire, Sosa, Bonds, A-Rod, and you can go on and on including Pete Rose but will these guys ever see Cooperstown just saying???
I've heard stories from minor leaguers about what it was like in those years.. two teammates would be something like .260/12 HR hitters.. nothing special.. then after the off season one would come back juiced to the gills and hit .320 with 30 HR and get to the majors and the other guy hit .260/12 HR like always and never make it. So the motivation to use that stuff was huge.
I've seen the impact! In quilt club, I use to make about 5 quilts a season more than Gertrude. She got hold of some steroids, and now she makes twice what I make. It just isn't fair.
Bonds was a hall of famer before p.e.ds. Major League baseball deliberately turned a blindeye to it bc they profitted significantly from the players' usage of it. 👌I agree with Mr. Bench when he said that p.e.ds wasn't being tested for at the height of that time. Players were allowed to use amphetamines but ostracized for using anabolic steroids. That is hyprocrisy to say the least.👉
It’s like Bill Burr talking about Lance Armstrong,”He didn’t do anything to me, you know what that lie did? It raised millions of dollars for cancer research. You can’t blame a guy doing whatever it takes to get to the next level.” Canseco, McGuire, Sosa, Bonds etc, just did everything to get to the next level in that era.
Dumb a$$ question. All the players need to be in the hall of fame regardless of ped's. It will be part of the baseball legacy. The sport needs it and it wasn't illegal, not tested, etc.
@@EddieTheHorrorAddict Pete Rose's numbers are real. All those hits were achieved without steroids. The same can't be said for Barry Bonds. Numbers matter for the HOF. If the numbers were cheated, it's definitely worse than betting on your team.
In my opinion, Bonds was a HOFer based on just his career as a Pirate. He won multiple MVPs there. Not many people can say that, including plenty of guys who made it in.
Barry Bonds was the best player in the major leagues while he was with Pittsburgh. Mark McGuire was a natural slugger when he came up as a rookie and set a record for home runs. They were natural talents. They had HOF credentials until they started with steroids. They would have made the HOF if they abstained. Heavy price for bad decisions.
What’s more sad is the whole f’n league was on shit. He was just superhuman once he decided to join the club. And guys are in who used, pudge, piazza and bagwell to name a couple. The best will be when papi goes in even though he actually failed a test. It’s ridiculous.
Hell yes, Barry Bonds should be in the Baseball Hall of Fame! These people are judging don't know or like him. You are entitled to your opinion, but unless you know Barry, you can't judge him. Let God do his own job, He doesn't need your help. ⚾️💯
This is the one thing I hare about Johnny Bench: he is so pure.... he hates Pete Rose to death and everyone on the PED era... because you know: he was so pure. Hypocrite to the core, vindictive. If you notice he tries to avoid a straight answer. IMO Bonds and Clemens are HOF... and Pete Rose as well. But Bench is so selfish and, again, so pure.....
Barry Bonds shouldn't give a shit if they let him in the Hall of Fame! His hitting was probably the most amazing athletic prowess in the history of mankind!
He's a cheater. Plain and simple. And sadly... he might have been one of the top 10 or 20 baseball players in history - without all the crap he pumped into his system. Most of us don't care if Bonds cares or not. He's not getting in. It's a slap in the face to the vast majority of those guys who are in the Hall - who did it the right way - and honorably. Character matters. To most of us.
I checked out a book in the Carnegie Library in Brownsville,Tn. in 1975 because I had moved into the position as a little league catcher.I was a big fan of the big red machine that was the cincinnati Reds and I remember them to this day.Johnny Bench is one of the greatest catchers of all time and I studied his technique through his book on catching.
Barry will never admit he used. Mark Mcguire did and host of others. Just say you did and take responsibility and maybe will see what happens. Barry a great player. Bat speed was incredible. Just a great ball player. But some kind of accountability needs to be taken. Too many great players who played by the rules and did everything right by the game are in the hall. It not right Barry , it just not right!
Agree. And of he (and others admit it), the topic dies. The only thing keeping the discussion alive is their denials in the face of the facts (although largely circumstantial facts).
Y’all bogus. Mike Piazza Albert pujos in the hall they some cheaters too. Smh how the best hitter (arguably ever) and the best pitcher of the generation aren’t in the hall of fame but these other jokers are is a mockery of the hall #freeBARRY #freeRocket
Barry’s not in the Hall is because he was a di(khead to the voters when he was playing. Now he wants their votes but they remember him well. My gosh he was the greatest player I’ve ever seen. People that don’t know and didn’t watch him play think that his best was 73hrs. He was walked intentionally hundreds of time, had not for that he would have got 100 plus homers easily 😂.
