European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - July 13, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Wednesday july 13, 1994 a sports n the stars and stripes Page 33 on player in Nas been s Dave Anderson Barry Bonds was considered a the Best baseball in recent years but now that title awarded to Ken Griffey or. Or should it be awarded to Frank Thomas or by the end of the season will All the headlines belong to Matt Williams if he rather than Griffey or Thomas were to break Roger Marisa record of 61 homers if that is the 162-game season a Isnit interrupted or shortened by a strike. Whatever their eventual stats All four were on display in tuesday nights All Star game at three Rivers stadium a reminder of a time when labor negotiations did no to take the fun out of baseball. A when i pick up the paper a Griffey was saying now a i look to see what Barry  Quot i look to see what Junior did a said Bonds the giants. Left fielder. A a he a the Best player in be Ever seen. I on wish thy would Stop calling him a kid. He a 24 years old. He a married with a Little boy. He a in his sixth season. He a got a Chance to make s200 million. He a not a kid  u but with his Boyish face and his nickname the Mariner Center fielder known As Junior resembles a kid. He even wears his Cap backward in batting practice As a kid would a playful habit that prompted Buck Showalter the Yankee manager to question Griffey so a respect for the game. Junior disagreed. A Buck does no to know me he does no to know what in a about a he said. A the hat is something in be always  j he remembered that his father wore a size in. Cap As a Cincinnati reds outfielder two decades ago. A the Only Way i could Wear his Cap was to put it on backwards a he said. A in batting practice i still Wear it backward and i like to Wear a plastic jacket but when the game starts my hat is Forward and my shirts tucked in and i just play  in the All Star balloting his ability to a just play balls and his a a kids image prompted More than 6 million commentary votes from fans a record. And when he was introduced As the leading vote getter at mondays All Star news co Jeff re be he even acted like a kid., a a in a like to thank everybody who voted for me a he said then he paused. A boy in a  not As nervous As the pitchers who must face this slugger whose 33 Home runs give him a Chance to break Marisa record. But for All the recent charts listing marts 61 homers in 1961 and babe Ruth a 60 in 1927, suddenly Matt Williams Atso has 33 homers and Frank Thomas has 32. A when i hit my 33 re a Williams said a it did no to occur to me until the reporters mentioned it to me after the  Williams the giants third baseman insisted he a not thinking about Roger Maris or babe Ruth. But suppose he gets to 50?. 1 set t0 5�tflat would be a pretty Good year a he said. A i try to hit the Ball hard not swing for the fences. Lost amid the talk of Home runs is the fact that Thomas has the Best Chance of emerging As the first trr5own�?T�?T Winner since Carl Yastrzemski in 1967 a leading the league in batting Home runs and runs batted in. A the huge White sox first baseman is leading the american league with a .3.83 average his 32 homers Are second and his 78 runs batted in arc Only three behind the Leader Kirby Puckett. A 11,115 scored Thomas is also a threat to break babe Ruth a record of 177, set in 1921. Bonds meanwhile is batting .283 with 23 homers and 54 runs batted in despite a swollen right Elbow that will require Post season surgery. A will be 30 this month pm not 24,�?� he said with a laugh. A my Back hurts now it did t Hurt at 24. But in be Griffey u a a i re a a Williams w in. V a a a a. V a. A a a a a r a /. Thomas Bonds go to the world series. In be been in three playoffs and lost. I be been in a Pennant race that went Down to the last Day and  but like Junior Griffey Frank Thomas and Matt Williams Barry Bonds has never shortchanged his employers. A a we be been fortunate to bring Back the Light of that  of baseball a he said. A we play the game because we love the Gamet Vou work so hard to climb that Mountain but its even harder to stay on that  than a York Tim arc Garmisch outdoor sports sea amp ski weekends in a a a july 2 amp 3 july 23 amp 24 aug. 6 amp 7 aug. 20 amp 21 sep. 3 amp 4 sep. 17 amp 18 raft Austria a spectacular inn River ski Solden Glacier excursion p rafting trip amp equipment overnight in Solden a breakfast full Day ski lift ticket ski equipment All transportation minimum age i4yrs. Only $139 for reservations and information Call arc outdoor sports office Dan 4402-591/644 or Civ 08821-52066 the savings continue. July 30% off everything in the store \ a copt textbooks Mona Zines nows papers amp hardcover Oost Sellers. 10% off All magazines amp already reduced he bestsellers i a a k stars and stripes met nomm bookstores