1. Will Barry Bonds break Hank Aaron's record of 755 home runs?
After swatting 73 home runs in perhaps the greatest season ever by a hitter, Bonds trails Aaron by 188 home runs. Over the five years of the contract (including the option year), Bonds would have to average 37.8 home runs per season to break Aaron's record.

What's the likelihood? Over the past five years, Bonds has hit 233 home runs, an average of 46.6 per season. Of course, Bonds turns 42 in the fifth year of the deal, and a 42-year-old Barry Bonds is unlikely to be as healthy or as productive as a 33-year-old Barry Bonds.

Still, Stats, Inc., in their "2002 Major League Handbook" estimates Bonds as having a 43 percent chance to hit 756 and a 25 percent chance to hit 800 home runs.

Here's another way of looking at it. If Bonds hits the following number of home runs in 2002, here is what his season average over the next four years would have to be:

73 ... 29.0 per season
60 ... 32.3 per season
50 ... 34.8 per season
40 ... 37.3 per season
30 ... 39.8 per season

Of course, if Bonds does break Aaron's mark, Sammy Sosa -- 4½ years younger -- may be hot on his heels. Stats, Inc. estimates Sosa, who is 117 homers behind Bonds, as having a 47 percent chance at 756 and 35 percent chance at 800.

2. Yeah, but will Bonds remain productive?
Thanks to the terrific baseball-reference.com we can check the 10 most similar players to Bonds at this point in his career. Not surprisingly, nine of the 10 are Hall of Famers. However, none are really that similar, since none were nearly as good as Bonds at this age. The list: Mickey Mantle, Willie Mays, Frank Robinson, Jimmie Foxx, Mel Ott, Eddie Mathews, Hank Aaron, Rafael Palmeiro, Babe Ruth, Reggie Jackson.

Here is how many home runs they hit through age 36 (Bonds' "baseball age" in 2001) and how many they hit after:

Player     Before 36   After 36
Mantle        536         0
Mays          564        96
Robinson      522        64
Foxx          527         7
Ott           510         1
Mathews       512         0
Aaron         592       163
Palmeiro      447        ??
Ruth          611       103
Jackson       464        99

Only Aaron comes remotely close to the 189 home runs Bonds needs for the record. However, while the list of all-time slugging leaders shows surprising deterioration at age 37, that doesn't mean Bonds will follow that path. He's in terrific shape and has a lot of room to drop and still remain a terrific player.

3. So, he's worth the $90 million?
Bonds' average salary of $18 million ties him with Sosa as the fourth-highest paid player in the game (average annual value), behind Alex Rodriguez, Manny Ramirez and Derek Jeter. Obviously, Bonds is a higher risk due to his age; of the rest of the top 10, only Roger Clemens is older than 33.

Aside from that, what's interesting is that only Rodriguez and Jeter play key up-the-middle positions. The rest, like Bonds, are corner outfielders (Ramirez, Sosa) or first basemen (Jason Giambi, Jeff Bagwell, Carlos Delgado, Todd Helton). And of those players, only Bagwell matches Bonds as a good baserunner and good defensive player. It appears that Jeter is the only player getting extra credit for playing a key defensive position, since he isn't the equal of the others at the plate. So, within the current salary structure, Bonds is worth it if age and injuries don't catch up to him.

4. Will Bonds get his ring?
"My main goal is winning," Bonds said after signing his new deal. "Through long hours of work, we were able to structure everything to benefit us and keep the Giants competitive. I'm glad I was able to help myself and the organization. I want to win here."

The Giants won 90 games last year with Bonds hitting 73 home runs and slugging .863 and making $10.3 million in salary. Because of the debt load they owe on Pac Bell Park ($170 million total at $20 million per year), they are a mid-level payroll team -- 15th in 2001 -- despite ranking second in the majors in attendance in 2001.

Will Bonds' big contract hinder the club's payroll? Not necessarily. Because of the way Bonds' deal is structured, it won't dramatically increase the team's payroll. Bonds will receive $13 million in salary in 2002 and a $2.5 million signing bonus; however, $5 million will be deferred, so the Giants will pay Bonds $10.5 million in 2002 -- nearly the same as 2001. Of course, that deferred money will have to eventually be paid out.

Other than signing J.T. Snow to a long-term deal (through 2003), the Giants aren't locked up in too many bad contracts. Jeff Kent is a free agent after 2002. Will the Giants want to sign a player who will be 35 years old? If not, who replaces Kent in the lineup? Will Jason Schmidt live up to the money being paid him? These are key questions for the Giants to answer.

Remember, as Bonds ages, he will decline. The Giants' window of opportunity to win may decrease with each year he's on the roster.

5. What will Bonds' ultimate place in history be?
He's the only player to win four MVP awards. He may break the all-time home run record. He broke Babe Ruth's single-season slugging record. He's won eight Gold Gloves and stolen 484 bases. He may not be well-liked, but his legacy as one of the all-time greatest players is secure. He's one of the top 10 and will rank alongside Ted Williams, Willie Mays, Honus Wagner and Aaron behind only Ruth.

David Schoenfield is the baseball editor at ESPN.com.