The Super Bowl is one week from tonight. The Patriots and Giants will do business in the Arizona desert for the NFL’s top prize, the Vince Lombardi trophy. That’s a whole week away and with the conference championship games last weekend, there is no football this weekend.
The NBA is in the last stages of games leading up to the All Star game next month, and NASCAR gets cranked up in February too.
Fortunately, the Major League Baseball season is about to begin, as pitchers and catchers report for spring training in about two weeks. Last month, December 13th specifically, the Mitchell Report was released. This report, compiled by former US senator George Mitchell, apparently details the extent of steroid and PED (performance enhancing drugs) usage, and it’s impact, on the Major Leagues. One name mentioned in the report (82 times) is Roger Clemens.
William Roger Clemens was born August 4th, 1962, in Dayton Ohio, and moved to Houston Texas in 1977. I have never been a fan of Roger Clemens. From the first interview I ever saw with him in college at the University of Texas, he seemed to me aloof and arrogant. There’s no denying Clemens’ accomplishments on the baseball diamond. He was 25-7 at UT, was an All American both seasons, and was on the mound when Texas clinched the 1983 College World Series, and was the first Longhorn baseball player to have his number retired. In 2004, the Rotary Smith award, given to the nation’s best baseball player, was renamed the Roger Clemens award, and is given to the nation’s best collegiate pitcher. Clemens’ career as a professional is even more impressive. Roger Clemens has won seven Cy Young awards, two more than any other MLB pitcher, in 1997 and 1998, as a member of the Toronto Blue Jays, Clemens won baseball’s triple crown (leading the league in wins, ERA, and strikeouts). He recorded his 300th win and 4000th strikeout in the same game in 2003. Clemens is one of only four pitchers (the others being Nolan Ryan, Randy Johnson and Steve Carlton) to have at least 4000 strikeouts in their career. In 1986, Clemens became the first pitcher in Major League history to strike out 20 batters in a regulation 9 inning game. There’s no doubt in my mind that Roger Clemens will be a first ballot Hall of Fame inductee.
Two incidents come to mind about Clemens that have formed my negative opinion of him, both happened in 2000. In a game against the Seattle Mariners, Clemens came dangerously close to hitting Alex Rodriguez, who would be his teammate several years later in New York. After the game Lou Pinella, then the Seattle manager, referred to Clemens as a “headhunter”. That same year the Yankees played the Mets in the World Series. Most people know by now of the broken bat incident with Met catcher Mike Piazza. A shard from the broken bat bounced to the mound and Clemens picked it up and tossed it at the knees of Piazza as he ran towards first base. Clemens later stated that he thought it was the ball. What? Come on, Roger, the ball? The only thing in my opinion more asinine than that explanation is the fact that Clemens offers no apologies for his actions toward Piazza.
Clemens has also been known to complain for having to carry his own luggage through airports, he’s referred to Fenway Park as a subpar facility, and his on-again-off-again retirement just bothers me. Every year for the past few seasons Clemens has dangled a carrot in front of several MLB general managers about whether or not he intends to play or not, and invariably about June or July (probably when he decides which teams are going to contend for the league pennants) he gives his answer.
I honestly don’t know Roger Clemens from Adam, but as I’ve often said, you need to know less about someone to dislike them than you do to like them. When it comes to baseball, Roger Clemens is an icon. In real life, he may be a great guy to hang out with, go fishing, or drink a beer, although I doubt it. I’d much rather meet Samuel Clemens than Roger Clemens. The title of this piece doesn’t refer to the passage from the national anthem, but rather the red glare in Clemens eye when his name was mentioned in the Mitchell report. Has Roger Clemens ever used HGH or any other PED? I really don’t care. Is he going to pitch this season or not? I certainly hope not.
To me Roger Clemens is the Bret Favre of MLB, with one exception- I like Bret Favre. As for Roger? Please retire, and this time stay retired.
Thanks for reading.
OSL
All statistical information gathered from Wikipedia.
Retire.........
You wish you were good enough to carry his bags thru the airport. I met Roger and he is one of the finest, honest, totally baseball players in the Major Leagues.
Grow Up!!!!!!!!!
onesouthern'
Clemens' lawyer and the dissertation given as to Roger's upward climb of his career in his advancing years. It leads me to believe that either they had someone write that piece of cra*p for the public to consume and not feel insulted. Or that they felt it only obligatory to throw something out there.
Personally I think Roger's time infront of Congress will leave us all scratching our heads as to what the hell he's trying to say and the point he intends to get across. I don't belie him the fact of trying to prove his innocence but don't try to insult my intelligence with brazen lies.
If you've got time see my post titled If It Feels Good Then It's Got To Be Good !
Let me know what you think as to the merits of the piece ? I'll look forward to reading your comments.
Like you, I don't care for this person. It's his attitude. Kinda like he's superior to everyone else and then he is personally offended and becomes irate if he's questioned about his abilities. The fact of the matter is he accomplished most of his astonishing achievements at a time in his career when others who started out with similar abilities began declining. It certainly looks su####ious...
Clemens' "splainin" is supposed to be in front of congress. If he's proven guilty it's bad for him, if he's not it's bad for Mitchell and Selig. Either way it's bad for baseball. Thanks.
I AM good enough to carry his bags. Not only that, but I'm good enough (which he isn't) to carry MY OWN bags, and I'll never grow up. I think I'll send you a friends list invite.
Thanks so much for the comment. I have nothing personal against Roger Clemens, I just have always thought him arrogant and obnoxious. Did I just contradict myself?
southernlion; looks like everyone is in agreement here. let roger take his cocky,overpaid as of late,head hunting, needle marked butt to congress and see how that works out for him!
That was good. Roger the ROID thought it was the ball???? WHAT?? Small white round object or long thin tan wooden object. One he constantly throws the other he never touches. I can see how he gets them confused.
Indeed the "I thought it was the ball" 'splanation was an assinine 'scuse at the time, untill now, now we realize that it was "roid rage". Great pitcher? oh yeah, and thats all he is. I don't want the bum to retire, I want him to continue pitching, without roids, and with diminished skills, to bring down his overall career stats-rather than getting out when he should. F--K him!
Fenway IS a subpar facility....and if their cheapskate owners would acknowledge that and build a new park (like George is doing with his OWN money), their fans wouldn't have to pretend that it isn't.
I'm not saying it WAS roid rage, amd we may never know, but it was boderline stupid for Clemens to expect us to believe his story. Thanks for coming by.
BashtonSux-
Never been to Fenway. I'll take your word for it. Thanks for commenting.
Well I don't know RC from adam, but being from the area I hope he is not a doper. I do hope his reputation isn't tarnished to the extreme and I do hope he continues to teach young players good baseball techniques in the Houston area. Lucky for us the majority of the old talant from Bagwell, Biggio, Ryan and Clemmons and so on are proactive in the community. I also hope that these guys are being positive role models for the young guys that are coming up and out of HS and college.
sometimes we forget that the only info we on people like clemens is from the media we come in contact with...how would u like it if i got to cut and clip the pieces of your life i wanted people to see...im sure i could paint a pretty bad picture of anyone out there!! STOP BEING LED BY THE MEDIA PROGRAMERS!!!! there is info they dont show us!!
OSL...nice write-up, full of passion, and I agree. I think Clemens stats will obviously get him in the HOF-unless, of course, he's proven to be a juicer. I really don't care for his attitude, but more than anything else, he took advantage of a senile old man (Steinbrenner). Coming from a Yankees hater, that was tuff to say.:P
"Image" is all we really know about these guys..I think we tend to lean toward sports heroes that come across as "real", "approachable", "humble" and basically, just "nice" guys...People like Bonds and Clemens just don't fit that mold...consequently, we WANT to see them knocked off their perch.
If any of these guys, regardless of who they were, just came out and owned up to the fact that they did it...It would go along way towards public forgiveness and it might also raise the opinion of them a cupla points (see A. Pettite).
The fact that they continue to try and run a game on us becomes an insult to our intelligence and is patently offensive and really shows their true colors, ergo validating what we thought about them in the first place..
You can run...butya can't hide..
Lisa...I doubt if "taking advantage" of George Steinbrenner regardless of the shape he's in is anything less than a "badge of honor"...lol
Last edited by StevoinHTown on January 30th at 3:17 AM.
I have never been a fan of Clemens. I think his accomplishments are HOF caliber but personally I think he had "help". I think when Boston let him go, he felt like he had more to prove. I think most of us see athletes based on what they do and say and of course, what is written about them. There are certain athletes that come across as arrogant, self-righteous, self-promoters and selfish........Roger Clemens is one of them.
patrior24- No need to scream, man. You think Clemens has no control over what the media says about him? If that's the case his PR people need to be fired. He can always have them get out some positive spin material. If there is any. Clemens is no victim.
Lisa-
Your presence here, just like Lorie's, improves this blog greatly. Taking advantage of Steinbrenner? Is that possible?
Steveo- Thanks for the comment, and I agree about Petitte
