Barry Bonds has hit an amazing 28 home runs in 53 games, a figure that projects to 86 home runs over a full season. But forget about anyone else hitting 70 home runs again.

Hitting 70 home runs in the major leagues is unbelievable. Mark McGwire's accomplishment still astounds me. But everything went perfectly for the Cardinals' slugger that year. McGwire finished the 1998 season against the right team, the Montreal Expos, and hit four home runs over the final weekend.

	Bonds

Felipe Alou's philosophy was to not walk players just to keep them from reaching a record. He was careful about not disrespecting the game. So Alou had a lot of young pitchers who pitched to McGwire instead of pitching around him. If he hit home runs, so be it.

Not all managers think the same way as Alou. And if Bonds were to come close this season, I doubt the other team would pitch to him. He is more likely to be walking to first base than to be trotting around the bases.

Plus, don't forget: Bonds has yet to play even half the season and is still 42 home runs away from 70.

Sixty is more within Bonds' reach than 70. In fact, several players are capable of 60 home runs, not just McGwire or Sammy Sosa, who has done it twice. Remember, Bonds hit 49 home runs a year ago and has 522 (and counting) for his career. His greatness continues to grow each time he passes immortals like Ted Williams and Willie McCovey on the home-run list.

Like Sosa, Bonds deserves credit for being as durable as he is consistent. He has played more than 150 games in a season eight times, giving him a greater chance of finishing the season with a high number of home runs.

SUNDAY NIGHT BASEBALL

Cincinnati at St. Louis 8 p.m. ET, ESPN Play-by-play: Jon Miller Analyst: Joe Morgan How can one explain the Reds' league-worst home record? There is no good explanation. Only one team in baseball, Pittsburgh, has a worse road record than the Reds' home record (7-21). Sometimes, people might say a team is used to playing on Astroturf or is built for turf. Speedy teams are built for the turf, and the Reds are not a speedy team. In addition, they have a winning record on the road (13-11), where they have not played on turf either. There may be more pressure to win at home, where they are 7-21, because Ken Griffey Jr. is out and the Cincinnati fans expect the Reds to win. At the same time, there is less pressure to win on the road. Cinergy Field is a beautiful ballpark, and I like the changes to the park. But the Reds' home record is amazing to me. -- Joe Morgan

But 70? Seventy is crazy to consider even for Bonds, the best player of his generation.

Here are this week's five questions:

Where do you think Felipe Alou will manage next?
I have no idea where Alou will end up. It will depend on what he wants to do. Two years ago the Dodgers offered him a big long-term contract, but he decided to stay in Montreal.

If I were Alou, I would only go to a franchise that has both talent and the money to keep it in the organization. Whichever team hires Alou will be a better team. Tony Perez will stay on as the Florida Marlins' manager for the rest of the season, but the Florida job would be perfect for Alou. The Marlins have good young players who need direction, something Alou could provide.

However, the Marlins' situation would not be suitable if Miami fails to approve the construction of a new ballpark. Commissioner Bud Selig said the Marlins would be a likely candidate for relocation without a new stadium. But the combination of a new stadium, the organization's young talent and the area's Latin population would be appealing to Alou. He will have more choices, though, because people realize how good a manager he is.

What the Expos did was unfair to Alou, who waited 15 years in the organization to get a job as a major-league manager. For years, the Expos kept bringing in other managers to run the team, like Jim Fanning and Tom Runnells, while Alou was their best minor-league manager. When he finally got the job, he did great until the Expos started losing their star players, especially Larry Walker, Pedro Martinez and Moises Alou.

Because players kept leaving, Alou never won a pennant. But he brought the organization's young players along and got the most out of the players he had. Tony La Russa once said Alou would win if every manager were all given the same players.

Which hitter and pitcher impressed you the most in May?
Of the pitchers, Pedro Martinez is always impressive. His teammate, Hideo Nomo, pitched a one-hitter in May after a no-hitter and one-hitter in April. I also liked how Curt Schilling looked, even though his manager, Bob Brenly, took some of the luster off his bid for a perfect game with his comments about Ben Davis.

Another pitcher who looked impressive was Schilling's teammate, Geraldo Guzman. He was a carpenter for seven years and was out of baseball. I liked the movement on his ball and his composure on the mound. After working for seven years, he must have a greater appreciation for what a major-league baseball player is.

Of the hitters, I would start with Bonds and Ichiro Suzuki. Ichiro never walks; he just gets hits. I expect him to eventually slow down because he will get physically tired over the course of the season. But he has proven he is for real and one of the league's top hitters.

Some people may think he could be the American League's MVP so far. He has been a big contributor for the Mariners, but Bret Boone has done more to make them win. Boone has driven in more runs (50) than Alex Rodriguez (49) and Juan Gonzalez (48). Boone has proven to be more than capable as the team's No. 5 hitter and is the team's MVP over Ichiro.

At the 50-game mark, the NL division leaders are the Phillies, Cubs and Diamondbacks. Which team is most capable of sustaining its lead until the end?
All are capable of hanging on and winning division titles. Injuries will play a major part in how they perform the rest of the season. For that reason, the Diamondbacks have the best chance of winning their division because they can spend the money to replace an injured player. The Cubs are next, for the same reason. They can acquire another hitter, if they need one.

Despite having the best record in the National League, the Phillies will stay with their young players and won't be able to acquire any more help. The Phillies may have an eight-game lead, the largest of the three divisions, but with the Atlanta Braves behind them, the lead isn't as big as one might think.

Have draft bonuses gotten out of hand?
It's like everything else in baseball. The money is completely out of hand, but moreso in the draft because the talent is unproven.

Players coming out of college and high school are given too much money, more than some major-league players. At least in the major leagues, a player has proven he can play or has shown the potential of being a superstar. The NBA did a great job of limiting rookie salaries. Baseball should do the same.

Unlike the NBA or the NFL, where players are counted on to make an immediate impact, major-league draft picks usually never surface for three years. Only a rare few first-round picks turn up in the major leagues the following year. Although players are drafted based on potential, most of it is never realized. But an organization can build its team for the long run through the draft by getting quality talent evaluators.

Teams used to draft more high school players because there is much to learn about being a professional player. The sooner a player starts, the better off he is. But the last few years, teams have been drafting more college players, particularly pitchers. Teams want players with more experience who can get to the big leagues quicker. In the past, they were looking for high school players who could become superstars, like Ken Griffey Jr., Alex Rodriguez and Chipper Jones. Now, they want superstar pitchers, mostly from the college ranks. This year's example would be pitcher Mark Prior of USC. With teams having a more immediate need for pitching, the philosophy for drafting players has changed.

If pitching is all about wins and losses, does that mean Aaron Sele has been baseball's best pitcher?

	Sele

Although Sele is 8-0, he isn't ahead of Pedro Martinez (7-1) as baseball's best pitcher. But he has won at least 17 games for three straight seasons.

My philosophy is that a pitcher's job is to win games. His job is not to have a low ERA. I view an ERA much like I do a hitter's batting average; neither one wins games. For a hitter, RBI and runs win games. For a pitcher, it's wins and innings pitched.

Because he wins more frequently than most pitchers, Sele must be considered one of baseball's top pitchers.

Hall of Famer Joe Morgan is an analyst for ESPN.