Among others, granted, Cory Lidle has been critical of Bonds' achievements, saying that the records he are posting were made possible by performance-enhancing drugs. Big issue, someday will be resolved.

Not to argue FOR Bonds, or against the Bambino, but look at the circumstances that enabled Babe Ruth. Yankee Stadium was said to be the house that Ruth built. However, maybe the house built the Babe!

Ruth is a left-handed hitter, and pulls the ball to right field. In his day, the right field porch at Yankee Stadium was so close, any fly ball that was routine an other parks was a home run. The fence was only 295 feet away, about 20 feet shorter than other parks. The question then becomes...of his 714 home runs, how many were at Yankee Stadium that were between, say, 295 feet and 315 feet, which would be an area where these fly balls would likely have been caught, or have landed in a less than home run situation? Historical note...the fence remained at around 295 feet until 1976, when it was moved back to 310 feet.

Back in the 1920's and 1930's, there were no performance enhancing drugs...there were performance enhancing stadiums...and it's no accident at all that the right field fence was short. It could have been the left field fence. But Ruth is left-handed.

Anyone want to diss the Bambino? Do hot dogs count as performance enhancing substances?

Maybe, maybe not. However, "Ruth set distance records in virtually every stadium in which he played," William Jenkinson writes in The Home Run Encyclopedia.

Closer fences, but that was in the "dead-ball" era. Plus, you have to factor in Ruth's absolutely horrid personal health habits with the fact that today's athletes have access to top notch training technology.

All things are not equal, and Bonds had a tremendous advantage over Ruth even without steroids.

Records are silly in that way -- we look at them and think they can apply over a 100 year period, as if all things are equal. It would be fun to have all the greats play together in their prime and see who comes out on top.

What kinds of records would Jackie Robinson have set if he had not been constantly berated by racists? Or what if Josh Gibson had played in MLB? Or Sadahura Oh? Or Satchell Paige at 25? Or what if Ruth had the opportunity to use roids, or at least access to the kinds of training and technology we have today?

Records should be set in 20 year increments. Some are amazing -- DiMaggio's hitting streak, for example. If anyone breaks that, I will be shocked.

dead-ball was BEFORE Ruth...in his "house" anyway.

Imagine Ruth on steroids...or with Nautilus equipment...or how about Bonds on a diet of cigars, hot dogs, beer, and late nights...sounds like fun!

What if Ruth had been an everyday player instead of an all-star pitcher for the Sox for all those years? If you figure a minimum, bare minimum, of only 20 home runs a year, his HR record swells to over 800. If he averaged 30 per, then the record would be virtually out of reach of anyone.Would any of today's prima donas, who will sit out with a sore toe, ever have a chance at hitting 800 home runs, let alone 840+?