"I'm surprised," said one of his lawyers, John Burris, "but there's been an effort to get [Barry Bonds] for a long time. I'm curious what evidence they have now they didn't have before."

"This indictment came out of left field," [Mark Geragos] said. "Frankly, I'm aghast. It looks like the government misled me and [Greg Anderson] as well, saying this case couldn't go forward without him."

Union head Donald Fehr said he was "saddened" to learn of the indictment, but cautioned that "every defendant, including Barry Bonds, is entitled to the presumption of innocence unless and until such time as he is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt."