But now he also worries. Not just about Bonds, but McGwire, Sammy Sosa and all others suspected of cheating with performance enhancers. He worries about them personally.

"A major issue is what's going to happen five, 10, 15 years down the road," he said. "They could have some serious health problems. I don't know what's going to happen."

Everyone, he says, is to blame — players, management, fans, media. "We all like to see the ball go out of the park."

In 1998, when McGwire and Sosa were both on the way to breaking Roger Maris' single-season record, Killebrew was on the phone one day with Ted Williams, when Williams abruptly ended the conversation. The reason: the St. Louis Cardinals were on TV.

"He cut me off," says Killebrew.

It was compelling television. Who knew they might have been looking at a freak show?

Although he has no solid answers on how to deal with baseball's biggest problem, he says he's optimistic. He spoke with the Salt Lake Bees before Monday's doubleheader, calling it a nice, respectful group. Same thing happened last year. Great kids. They even knew his name.

Maybe, he was saying, there is hope. Perhaps tomorrow's players have learned their lessons well and will play as he did — with their hearts and their devotion and their gifts, rather than chemicals.

"Maybe," he said hopefully, "this new group will make a huge difference in the game."

Maybe they'll even come to see it through Killer's eyes.

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E-mail: rock@desnews.com