You're invited!

What: A pity party. Who: For Barry Bonds. When: Right now. Where: Wherever you happen to be. Why: Illness and fatigue. Apparently the poor guy is sick and tired of us.

At least that's the word out of Scottsdale, Ariz., where Barry Bonds told reporters on Tuesday that he might miss the entire 2005 season because of ongoing problems with his right knee.

"Right now I'm just going to try to rehab myself to get back to, I don't know, hopefully next season, hopefully the middle of the season. I don't know. Right now I'm just going to take things slow."

That's understandable, given that this is the first time Bonds' body ever has ignored his call to action. His knee first balked in January as he ramped up preparations for the 2005 season. He had it scoped, came to spring training, pushed too hard, set himself back, and had to have it scoped again last week.

Now he doesn't know when he'll be back, and that has to be a real dirt sandwich for someone who has averaged 143 games per season over his 19-year career. Who couldn't sympathize?

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But Bonds couldn't leave it at that.

"I really don't have much to say anymore," he said. "My son and I (are) just going to enjoy life. My family's tired. You guys wanted to hurt me bad enough, you finally got there. You wanted me to jump off a bridge, I finally have jumped. You wanted to bring me down, you've finally brought me and my family down. Finally done it. From everybody, all of you. So now go pick a different person. I'm done."

Oh, puke.

For one thing, this represents what Bonds was thinking for 45 seconds on a Tuesday morning. As veteran Bonds watchers know, there is a difference between what Bonds says now, and what he'll feel and say a few hours from now.

For another, and here we get to the meat of the matter, whatever "inner hurt" Bonds may have been talking about, this is a sure-fire fact: He has brought it on himself.

Ever combative, eternally dismissive, chronically contemptuous, Bonds has treated the public at large as spittoons and shoeshine rags on his way to the Hall of Fame. For every heart-warming tale of an autograph signed, or a greeting acknowledged, there is a story like this:

One early morning at spring training a few years ago, Bonds was asked for an autograph by a young boy as the team was beginning to stretch. "Can't you see we're working?" Bonds told the boy. "Go tell your father to raise you better."

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