Barry Bonds has words of wisdom for Bryce Harper

Tom Gatto

Barry Bonds has words of wisdom for Bryce Harper image

Bryce Harper is receiving the Barry Bonds treatment. Walks upon walks.

Bonds, now the Marlins' hitting coach, knows how Nationals star needs to deal with it.

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“He’s going to have to stay disciplined — a lot,” Bonds told the Miami Herald on Monday, a day after the Cubs walked Harper intentionally three times in a game and six times total. Chicago issued him 13 walks in the four-game series at Wrigley FIeld. He struck out twice in his four official at-bats of the weekend (he also hit a sacrifice fly and was hit by a pitch).

“They’re playing to win,” Bonds said of the Cubs, per the Herald.

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Harper received another intentional walk Monday from the Tigers, giving him nine for the season. He walked twice overall, giving him 32 in 136 plate appearances. He still has a long way to go to reach true Bonds status, though: In 2004, Bonds walked 232 times, 120 intentionally. Both are major league records. 

The Cubs and Tigers have been comfortable passing Harper the past couple of days because Ryan Zimmerman, who hits behind Harper, is slumping. Bonds had Jeff Kent hitting behind him for several years with the Giants. Kent obviously had his ups and downs, too.

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“They caught days sometimes when Kent wasn’t hitting. And they caught days when Kent bombed them. It can backfire on you. It’s the price you’re going to pay," Bonds told the Herald. "(The Cubs) just got Zimmerman on a cold weekend. Doesn’t necessarily mean it’s going to work all the time. They just got Zimmerman on a bad weekend. We’ve all had those.”

Tom Gatto

Tom Gatto Photo

Tom Gatto joined The Sporting News as a senior editor in 2000 after 12 years at The Herald-News in Passaic, N.J., where he served in a variety of roles including sports editor, and a brief spell at APBNews.com in New York, where he worked as a syndication editor. He is a 1986 graduate of the University of South Carolina.