Well, yippee, the Astros officially announced that they've signed Roger Clemens (AKA The Big Dumb Animal), to play for the rest of their year.

Man, I hope that they weren't expecting for all of us to get excited. Clemens can pitch, don't get me wrong, but to me he's just a big bully who wears a Major League uniform. His behavior has been quite a bit under the stellar mark over the years, and I've never been able to get over it. This is a man who has gone to the little league games of his son and gotten into fights with umpires: what an example to set!

Even worse for me, I've always felt that Clemens and his bullshit antics have cost Doggie his due amongst the media and fans. Clemens is the one, of the two of them, who makes the most noise, so he gets all of the attention... are you kidding me? We've come down to reinforcing negative behavior, have we? Even in what should be the last vestige of sports purity? Lovely. Can I gag now?

It's somewhat odd, but I've noticed something over the years: if you're someone who is a Maddux fan and you appreciate his style and dedication, then chances are that you despise Clemens. Even better, it goes both ways, so that if you like Clemens, there's good odds that you don't like Mad Dog. I've gotten into verbal disagreements with people who think that Clemens is the bomb, because, after all, I'm all about the Doggie. I know it's horrible, but I prefer an intelligent man who can pitch you blind, versus one who depends on his speed and power. Now, I know that baseball (and pitching) has changed drastically over the years, it's all about the "power game" instead of the "inside game", but as much as I like to see a dinger go out of a park or a fastball blow past a guy, I enjoy small ball so much more. The reason is simple, really: the "inside game/ small ball" requires a great deal more intellect and artistry than the "power game" does. Sure, it's nice to see players pull a yardjob and whack the ball out, and sometimes that wins games,... but for teams like my Chicago Cubs, depending on dingers has literally hung them out to dry in the standings. A big part of the reason that Maddy blew up in Florida was because he managed to get on base and they LEFT HIM THERE, which the Cubs are notorious for doing with all of the men who get on base. Pitching has become part of the "power game" as well, and I just can't stand it.

I guess that what I'm trying to say is that true talent, true artistry in baseball is far too often overlooked for the quick and cheap homerun, or the quick and powerful fastball that has hitters cringing. I'm not trying to detract from the incredible home run numbers put up by gentlemen like Pujols, Ruth, etc, or the numbers of men like Randy Johnson, etc... I'm just saying that the number of players who can constantly keep hitting dingers is far less than those who, if taught properly, can help their teams by learning solid fundamentals. The number of pitchers who can last a long time in the league, and be a force, is also limited because of the fact that the harder you throw, the more you mess up your arm: look at Kerry Wood and tell me that isn't a factor in his injuries.

In the end, power only accounts for so much. For some players, it's easy as hell to get on the mound and throw heaters so that hitters strike out... but remember, there are also cerebral pitchers out there who remind us of what the game should really be about at the end of the day.

Mayhaps one day I will break down the reasons that I think that Doggie has surpassed Clemens and other such power pitchers, but at the moment I'm trying to get a break from all of the "Clemens signed!!" bullshit.

Big whoop. I wouldn't do him! Where's the nerdy pitcher?! ;-)