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illegal drug use has been rampant throughout baseball for many decades. If it's not steroids, it's speed/uppers/greenies. Although it didn't really make headlines until the past couple of years, ephedrine has been on the market forever, and i'm sure plenty of ball players have used that as well. Is anyone discounting the 462 home runs that Canseco hit, more than all but 25 other baseball players to have played the game? Is there a big asterisk by his totals?
From 1920-1933 alcohol was illegal in the United States. You gonna tell me that the Babe didn't consume any alcohol for those 13 years? While it can't really be argued that alcohol is a performance enhancing drug, he still consumed an ILLEGAL drug for 13 of his playing years. So, should all of his stats be discounted?
With techonological advances in nutrition, exercise, medicine, etc, etc, ALL of today's players have an advantage over the players of Ruth's time. Which really just goes to say that what Babe Ruth did was that much more amazing. But it also means you can't discount what Bonds has done at all.
Babe Ruth was an extremely effective pitcher, who racked up big numbers on the mound. Had he spent his career only as a pitcher, he likely would have still been a hall of famer, although maybe not as legendary of one. That's what gives Ruth the edge and makes him the greatest baseball player of all time.
However, Bonds is the greatest hitter of all time. Period.
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