Barry Bonds' 2004 Season Was One For The Ages
We remember the seventh and final MVP season of Barry Bonds' career, in which he reached several historic milestones.
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Pregame Pepper
Did you know…
. . . Barry Bonds is one of only five players in AL/NL history to record a 40/40 season with at least 40 home runs and 40 steals, which he accomplished in 1996 with the Giants. The other four members are Ronald Acuña Jr. (2023, Braves), Alfonso Soriano (2006, Nationals), Alex Rodriguez (1998, Mariners), and Jose Canseco (1988, Athletics).
. . . Of Barry Bonds’ seven MVP Awards, only one was unanimous: 2002 (even in Bonds’ 2004 season, three other players received first-place MVP votes: Adrián Beltré, Albert Pujols, and Scott Rolen). But in 2002, Bonds had no competition for the honor after leading the Majors with a .370/.582/.799 slash line and a 268 OPS+ with 198 walks.
Leading Off
Reflecting On Barry Bonds’ Historic 2004 Season
By Matt Graves
2024 marks 20 years since Barry Bonds had perhaps his best season. Love him or hate him, he produced some of the greatest campaigns in baseball history. There are the 762 home runs he hit, and he won seven National League MVP Awards and earned multiple accolades during his 22-year career with the Pittsburgh Pirates and San Francisco Giants.
But his path to Cooperstown has been completely shut due to his connections with performance-enhancing drugs. Instead of thinking of what could have been for Bonds, let us look back at the most prolific campaign of his career.
Say HEY, Kid!
April 12, 2004, was a special day for Bonds. It was the most meaningful milestone of his career as he hit his 660th career home run. The significance of the home run is massive, as Bonds tied his godfather, San Francisco Giants legend Willie Mays, for third on the all-time list. He matched the Say Hey Kid with a three-run homer off Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Matt Kinney. After circling the bases, Bonds shared a special moment with Mays and the hometown crowd.
Bonds passed Mays on the career home run list the following day. He then hit his 700th off of Jake Peavy on September 17.
Seventh And Final MVP Award
Bonds slashed .301/.406/.565 with 33 home runs and 52 steals to earn his first NL MVP Award in 1990 with the Pirates. In his final MVP-winning season of 2004, Bonds hit .362 en route to his second NL batting title with 45 home runs and 101 RBIs. He won the award for the fourth consecutive year with some of the greatest seasons in baseball history from 2001 through 2004, including his record-breaking 73 home runs in 2001. By winning the honor at age 40, Bonds surpassed Willie Stargell, who was previously the oldest player to win the award at 39.
Five Consecutive Giants MVPS
Bonds’ four straight victories, plus Jeff Kent winning the 2000 NL MVP, made the Giants the first team to win five consecutive MVPs. The New York Yankees lead the American League in MVP Awards with Yogi Berra (1951, 1954, 1955), Mickey Mantle (1956, 1957, 1962), Roger Maris (1960, 1961), Elston Howard (1963), Thurman Munson (1976), Don Mattingly (1985), Alex Rodriguez (2005, 2007) and Aaron Judge (2022). Other Giants winners were Carl Hubbell (1933, 1936), Willie Mays (1954, 1965), Willie McCovey (1969), Kevin Mitchell (1989) and Buster Posey (2012). The Giants’ 12 MVPs are second-best in the NL, only behind the St. Louis Cardinals (21).
Matt Graves is an editor and writer for Last Word on Baseball. You can find him on Twitter at @LWOSGraves.