Louis Lanzano / AP file

“As anyone can plainly see, I’m 5-6½ and a strapping 150, and unlike some people, I came by all of it naturally,” Bob Costas told the Associated Press in a telephone interview Thursday.

updated 7:09 p.m. ET July 26, 2007

SAN FRANCISCO - Barry Bonds says his problem with Bob Costas has to do with his reporting, not the broadcaster’s height.

Bonds called Costas a “little midget man who knows (nothing) about baseball” following this week’s broadcast of HBO’s “Costas Now.”

“My reaction stemmed from my feelings about Costas’ statements during a broadcast,” Bonds said in a journal entry posted on his Web site. “The comment I made about him was off the cuff, and my problem with Costas is not with his height, but with his irresponsible journalism. If my choice of words offended anyone, that was not my intent.”

Costas believes the San Francisco Giants star has used performance-enhancing drugs and said he viewed Bonds’ accomplishments as inauthentic.

“I take great offense to those statements, especially coming from someone who is supposed to have journalistic integrity and not make blanket reckless accusations,” Bonds said in his journal entry.

Costas said he wasn’t offended by Bonds’ snipe.

“As anyone can plainly see, I’m 5-6½ and a strapping 150, and unlike some people, I came by all of it naturally,” Costas said Thursday.