BONDS, THE BABE AND BOASTFUL COMPARISONS.

Byline: MATT McHALE

NEW YORK - Any high school science class in America could outdo Thomas Edison or Marconi. The guy who discovered fire would get buried today by most Boy Scouts.

Barry Bonds should remember that when he starts taking on Babe Ruth as the greatest player of all time.

His recent rips at the Bambino are caught in a time warp, so far out in left field that they alienate baseball fans just when he needs them most.

Not that Bonds cares if you understand. But right now he needs your prayers. His father, Bobby, is dying of lung cancer and recently had a heart attack.

Bonds left the San Francisco Giants on Friday and flew to his father's bedside in the Bay Area.

It would be nice to salute the greatest slugger of our generation, but he doesn't let you. It would be just to remember his dad as one of the greatest blends of power and speed the game has ever known.

Instead, you turn away and keep counting the games in Albert Pujols' hitting streak.

It is time to put away the dislike even though Bonds makes that difficult.

Before the Giants faced the New York Mets early last week, Bonds said he was a better player than Ruth.

He said Ruth didn't have his speed and played in an era before integration.

Naturally he backed up his boasts by hitting two homers in a loss to the Mets on Wednesday.

What Bonds failed to realize is he doesn't need to say anything about Babe Ruth or anyone else. Comparisons are the fans' greatest toy, even more than Rotisserie leagues.

Willie Mays/Mickey Mantle, Joe DiMaggio/Ted Williams, Thurman Munson/Carlton Fisk. It is part of what makes summer, summer. Even in winter.

If you got the chance to see Ken Griffey round third on his way to scoring the series-winning run that put Seattle in the 1995 American League Championship Series against Cleveland, you would not ask who is the greatest player of the past decade. It was on the other night and still sends chills.

Today Griffey is a shell, recovering from shoulder and foot surgery. But if you remember him climbing walls in the Kingdome, you could say that for 10 years he was the best there ever was.

In New York, where Ruth became a legend and carried the sport into modern times, there will never be anyone else. Bonds was stepping on hallowed ground.

They fought back. Bonds' long-rumored involvement with steroids became a huge topic on radio talk shows. Pictures were splashed in newspapers showing the svelte Barry of 1998 next to the hulking menace who hit 73 home runs two seasons ago.

Bonds repeatedly has denied any use of steroids and always poses the question of how supplements can help you hit a baseball.

Actually, they can.

The added strength also increases quickness at the plate. For professional hitters, those added milliseconds mean everything. More strength means players can hit the ball out of any part of the park and are less likely to try to pull the ball.

But to suggest Bonds' success was created in a lab is ludicrous. His biggest development has been a keen eye at the plate. He just does not swing at a bad ball. When Bonds hit 73 homers two years ago, there never has been a batter so locked in at the plate, including Ruth. He got one pitch per at-bat and that usually was enough. That is a skill that sets him apart from everyone.

There also is a tremendous offseason workout program that has turned Bonds into a strong safety with a dancer's grace.

``No one will ever know how much he works,'' said former Dodger Gary Sheffield, who lived at Bonds' house two winters ago just to get in shape. ``People say what they want, but I've seen him. That is the key to his success.''

Dizzy Dean, the old St. Louis Cardinals right-hander from Ruth's era, used to say, ``It ain't bragging if it's fact.''

But that was long before ESPN.

Even in a trash-talking society, Bonds' boasts make you cringe.

His arrogance proves he always has been a soloist in a team sport. He keeps his managers and teammates at a distance. The fans are even further away.

Bonds needs to remember his sport still is not that healthy. Even on the weekend of the much-hyped Little League World Series, kids are tuning out the game.

Certainly Babe Ruth hit a bunch of his home runs off 82-mph fastballs from the '20s and '30s. The right-field fence at Yankee Stadium was 300 feet from home plate. He had Lou Gehrig batting behind him, not Jose Cruz Jr.

But if Barry Bonds wants his due, he needs to keep swinging and stop talking. He needs to embrace Babe Ruth, not tear him down.

Don't worry, we'll remember how great you were.

And your dad.