Bonds testifies in steroid probe

The six-time National League MVP entered the grand jury room late yesterday morning accompanied by attorney Mike Rains and left the room nearly 5 1/2 hours later, though it was unclear how long he testified.

"It went fine," Bonds said as he was led by two bodyguards and two federal marshals to a freight elevator that was held for him.

Bonds's wife and mother sat in a nearby hallway during most of his appearance. At one point, Bonds -- who wore a sports jacket and tie -- stuck his head into the hallway and asked, "Is my mother here?"

Benito Santiago, a free agent who spent the past three seasons as Bonds's teammate with the San Francisco Giants, testified for 45 minutes later in the afternoon.

His attorney, David Cornwell, said he fears athletes who appear before the grand jury will be unfairly ostracized.

"My only concern is that there seems to be almost an undercurrent that stigmatizes these guys, which I think is inappropriate," Cornwell said.

Bonds has attributed his muscular development over the years to intense weight training, proper diet, and a regimen of nutritional supplements from companies such as the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative, or BALCO, that is at the heart of the grand jury probe.

Bonds repeatedly has denied using steroids.

Yesterday's appearance gave grand jurors the chance to ask the Giants slugger under oath whether his growth has been entirely natural.

Other athletes who already have appeared before the grand jury include track star Marion Jones and her boyfriend, 100-meter world record-holder Tim Montgomery, four Oakland Raiders, and Olympic champion swimmer Amy Van Dyken.

An appearance before the grand jury, or being subpoenaed to testify, does not mean an athlete is a target of the probe.

Two people have been named as targets of the grand jury -- BALCO founder Victor Conte, and Greg Anderson, Bonds's personal trainer.

Bonds, 39, became a BALCO client just before his record-setting 2001 season, in which he hit 73 homers, and has praised Conte for giving him a personalized nutritional program.

Anderson's home was raided by the Internal Revenue Service and a drug task force Sept. 5, two days after a similar raid at BALCO.