Bonds and Kent had a shoving match, but have put the situation behind them. Sure. This reminds me of Reggie Jackson and Thurman Munson. They hated each other. And with good reason, since both seemed to be loathsome individuals. Munson got better press, however, and was well liked by the manager. And the Yankees won.

You seem to have some elements of this here. Bonds is a jerk, but the manager likes him. Kent is a jerk, but got mostly good press until he allegedly lied about his motorcyle injury. They are both loathsome individuals, jealous of each other's success and extremely competitive. I love it. I hope it lights a fire under the team. Maybe it will teach Dusty Baker that it's a team, and you should treat all your players the same. Maybe it will get this team to play the way it should be, and take the NL West.

Give me the A's and Yankees of the 1970's. Never a dull moment. They didn't care about team chemistry. They just cared about winning.