SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – The asterisk-branded baseball that Barry Bonds hit to break the all-time home run record is expected to go on display at the National Baseball Hall of Fame later this month, museum vice president Jeff Idelson said Wednesday.
While the ball remains in the possession of fashion designer Mark Ecko, Idelson said such delays are common for donated items and that the controversial artifact should arrive in Cooperstown, N.Y., within a few weeks.
Bonds called Ecko “an idiot” for purchasing the ball at auction for $752,467 and setting up a Web site for fans to vote on its fate. Ecko announced in September that the ball would be branded with an asterisk – an implication that Bonds used steroids to fuel his pursuit of Hank Aaron’s all-time record – and donated to the Hall of Fame.
Idelson has attempted to contact Bonds, who said in September that he would boycott the Hall if it displays the marked ball.
“We are open to any dialogue he wishes to have,” Idelson said. “Before the display goes up, we would love to share it with Barry, make sure he’s comfortable and add to it, if he wants.”
Bonds, who is an unsigned free agent, will appear on a Hall of Fame ballot five years after retirement. His publicists did not immediately return a message seeking comment.
Idelson said the ball will be displayed as-is, and in full historical context.
“It will be part of a complete and impartial display with text that explains what happened to the ball from the moment it was hit to how it arrived in Cooperstown, and all the steps in between,” Idelson said. “It puts into context what the asterisk means. For a week in 2007, that’s how the public felt. It doesn’t mean that’s the way they feel now or will in the future. … It also symbolizes for Barry the stigmatism he was under as he went after the all-time home run record.”
Idelson has acquired other items from No. 756 that are on display in the Hall, including Bonds’ helmet, plate umpire John Hirschbeck’s ball/strike indicator and Giants broadcaster Duane Kuiper’s scorecard.
But the ball is the signature piece, he said.
“It is a poignant piece, historically – a piece that maintains its historical value over time,” Idelson said. “Our role is to display it and let the visitors make their own value judgment.”
Idelson was in Giants camp to speak with shortstop Omar Vizquel, who is 14 games away from passing Luis Aparicio for the most games at shortstop in major league history.
