Hank Aaron's Record

Hank Aaron has such class.

SAN FRANCISCO -- Barry Bonds hit No. 756 to the deepest part of the ballpark Tuesday night, and hammered home the point: Like him or not, legitimate or not, he is baseball's new home run king. Bonds broke Hank Aaron's storied record in the fifth inning, hitting a 3-2 pitch from Washington's Mike Bacsik 435 feet to right-center field.

Three days earlier, Bonds tied the Hammer with a shot to left-center in San Diego.

"Thank you very much. I got to thank all of you, all the fans here in San Francisco. It's been fantastic," he said shortly after crossing home plate, his godfather, Willie Mays, at his side.

Conspicuous by their absence were the commissioner and Aaron himself.

Though he was on hand for the tying homer, deciding to put baseball history ahead of the steroid allegations that have plagued the Giants slugger, Bud Selig wasn't there for the record-breaker.

Instead, he sent an emissary, Major League Baseball executive vice president Jimmie Lee Solomon.

As for Aaron, he said all along he had no interest in being there whenever and wherever his 33-year-old mark was broken. He was true to his word, but he did offer a taped message of congratulations that played on stadium's video board.

"It is a great accomplishment which required skill, longevity and determination," he said.

"Throughout the past century, the home run has held a special place in baseball and I have been privileged to hold this record for 33 of those years. I move over now and offer my best wishes to Barry and his family on this historic achievement.

"My hope today, as it was on that April evening in 1974, is that the achievement of this record will inspire others to chase their own dreams," he said.

Rather than appearing bitter, Aaron congratulated Bonds* with a gracious taped message. Really, really classy.

Perhaps Bonds* will wear his tarnished crown briefly if the steroid investigation reveals conclusively that Bonds* is a cheat, a fraud, a liar. I hope that's the case.

And Bud Selig managed to avoid being there.

That was such a lucky break for him. No one will be analyzing how he reacted nor will they be critiquing his every move and twitch like they did when Bonds* hit 755. No close-ups of his face. No grimaces.

As for the supposed new home run king, Barry Bonds* hit 756 home runs but he didn't break Hank Aaron's record, not in my book.

Aaron still is king.