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Aaron won’t honor Bonds

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From the Associated Press

Hank Aaron doesn’t plan to be at the ballpark if and when Barry Bonds breaks his home-run record.

“Uh-uh. No, no. I’m not going to be around,” Aaron was quoted as saying in Tuesday’s editions of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Bonds has 735 homers, 20 short of Aaron’s career record. Aaron has declined most interview requests in recent months, but he spoke with Journal-Constitution columnist Terence Moore.

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Aaron said he wouldn’t attend if Bonds were within reach of the record when the San Francisco Giants play at Atlanta on Aug. 14 through Aug. 16.

“I’d probably fly to West Palm Beach to play golf,” Aaron was quoted as saying in Moore’s column. “Again, it has nothing to do with anybody, other than I had enough of it. I don’t want to be around that sort of thing anymore.... It’s going to be a no-win situation for me anyway. If I go, people are going to say, ‘Well, he went because of this.’ If I don’t go, they’ll say whatever. I’ll just let them make their own mind up.”

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Mark Letendre, a former Giants trainer, told the Associated Press that he testified before the federal grand jury investigating steroid use in sports for about an hour Feb. 14.... Jay Payton, on the disabled list since March 27 because of a strained left hamstring, won’t return to the Baltimore Orioles for at least another week.... New York Mets reliever Duaner Sanchez had shoulder surgery and is expected to begin his rehabilitation within two months.

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