KEY POINTS:
Barry Bonds, poised to become the home-run king of baseball, says the pressure is off after drawing level with Hank Aaron at the top of the all-time list.
Bonds said "the hardest part was over" after equalling Aaron's mark on Sunday.
"There's no pressure on me now," Bonds said. "Mechanically, I've made some corrections [in my swing]. If I keep my mechanics right, you guys won't be around for long."
Around 400 reporters have followed Bonds since he hit homer No 754 on July 27 and will again be in attendance for San Francisco's home game today against the Washington Nationals.
Gone is the scowling, prickly outfielder who before his feat said the pressure of arriving at Aaron's mark often gave him rashes and caused him to feel sick.
Bonds said he was not concerned that he had not seen much of the pitching staff of the Nationals: "I don't look at film as much as [I] used to. I watch what they've done before. I've been in the major leagues for 22 years so I know. Some guys are younger and they make mistakes."
While Bonds has played in the majors for 22 years, he tries for the record-breaking homer against a 22-year-old pitcher who started this season with the Potomac Nationals, a Virginia outpost of the Carolina League.
Bonds had 754 home runs when left-hander Lannan won his first major league game last Thursday. Lannan's total major league career is 10 innings pitched.
The Giants stadium is the only arena in the National League where Bonds is not lustily booed, and where fans do not remind him of allegations that he has taken steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs.
He was clearly looking forward to getting there.
"Just tell all my fans and family I'm coming home," Bonds said. "I'm coming home."
- Reuters
