Feds Move to Indict Roger Clemens

According to an NY Daily News article, federal authorities are convening a grand jury to consider evidence that Roger Clemens perjured himself at hearing relating to the Mitchell Report and PED use in baseball.

Yankees fans will, of course, already know that the Rocket/McNamee saga is well documented from last December.

Honestly, though, one has to think that federal prosecutors have better things to do with their time.

Like, I don't know, trying to convictthis dude first?

Did Rocket use PEDs or HGH? Probably. Was McNamee kind of a weirdo for saving syringes? Oh yeah. Did Rocket lie under oath? Probably. In the grand scheme of things, does it matter to anyone that's not a baseball fan, lawyer or BALCO member? Probably not.

Roger That!

About the Clemens press conference today, there is one thing I'm focusing on:

Clemens says that Brian McNamee injected him with Lidocaine and B12. Clemens says he never provided the drugs, and thus inferred that McNamee did.

Thus:

How does Clemens know that what McNamee injected him with was in fact what McNamee said it was?


The phone conversation, engrossing as it was, is embellishment.


My thoughts with McNamee's family; I know how difficult Celiac disease can be to deal with, it is not something to be taken lightly.

Clemens did come across much more natural today than he did last night which I found reassuring. You may (and I expect, will) disagree.

Roger That?

So I'm guessing a fair lot of you caught the Roger Clemens interview on 60 Minutes.

I saw it, and had basically just one reaction: Clemens looked stiff, uncomfortable and rehearsed.

Now, I'm guessing that he had talked with his lawyer before doing the interview and some of the answers were, in fact, planned, but that does not help Clemens.

Many times you can tell more from an interview based not on what the interviewee says, but how they say it. One of the things I've actually learned in my four years at school: we communicate more with body language then actual words.

Clemens' body language? Stiff, uncomfortable...I kept waiting to see him squirm.


I'm hoping that it was the cameras, and overcompensating for any fidgeting he might naturally do (like tapping his foot or whatnot), but it's not like it's the first time he's ever been on TV.

The interview itself contained no surprising content, other then McNamee asking to borrow his fishing equipment (which was really, really low if true), so a lot more is likely to come from his press conference tomorrow and later testifying for Congress.

There is much to give credence to either side of the story, and though I try to be optimistic about the Yankees as a whole, I generally tend to be cynical with a lot of other things.

I wish there was a way to truly exonerate Clemens, but unless McNamee full on admits he was lying, there isn't, and, the Constitution aside, it's damn easy to label someone guilty until proven innocent.


This might drag on for years before we ever get a definitive answer.

Roger Clemens and Brian McNamee Asked to Testify

According to ESPN and NBC news, Roger Clemens and Brian McNamee have been asked to testify before Congress.

On that note,

Among the things people are recommending in terms of anti-PED activism, the one that strikes the most resonance for myself is the idea of education directed at students and young athletes.

We already do anti-drug and anti-alcohol programs like DARE, so i have to wonder, would it be that hard to add in a little bit about PEDs?

We could even do it in stages--broader for younger students, but more intense for older students, and especially for student athletes.

Just something to think about...



Meanwhile, this has easily been one of the most boring weeks in the year (I'm a Jets fan, so I don't have football fever)...but every day is a little bit longer, and it's one less day until the start of spring.

Wednesday Matinee

The acoustics in my house are horrible.

Catch the SPORTSTALKNY webcast tonight at 9 PM; I won't be there as I have tickets for the Nets (holy @#$# what did they do to ticket prices?!), but I did tape this as a substitute.

Initiation Rights

So I was talking with a friend last night, and he had an interesting quandry:

If Roger Clemens had, in fact, retired in 2002, he would have likely gained first-ballot admission to the Hall of Fame this year.

With all the talk about whether or not he (or any known steroid user) should gain HoF admission, there is the question that arise: what if someone well known and respected gets into the Hall of Fame, only to later be implicated in PED use?

What if Clemens had gotten into the Hall of Fame, before the Report came out? I'm sure the question now would be whether or not Clemens deserves to remain in the Hall?

It might be uncomfortable addressing such a question, but I will be surprised if it does not come up, and sooner rather than later. It'd certainly be more crushing--to find someone we all believed to have gotten in on talent and work ethic had successfully deceived us--than it would be if the deception is caught before the Hall of Fame vote becomes an issue.

Perception is often more important than reality. There are numerous instances of this throughout history--but I'll attempt to restrain my own political bias on a sports blog. There are other examples, though--think of Santa, the Tooth Fairy, even judged competitions--the gold might not go to the best skater, but instead the best competitor for that one performance.

It might not be right, but the hall of fame inductee isn't necessarily the best player out there--just the one we believe is the best. Think of Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez--Alex has the pure numbers, Jeter has the rings. Which one do you take?

What happens when, of two guys in the same class, one gets in and the other doesn't, and then, g-d forbid, the one that gets in is shown to have used PEDs, what then? Yeah, it's likely the one that didn't get in will eventually get in, but he'll have missed out on the whole first ballot thing.


What do you guys think? What happens if someone gets into the Hall and it's later revealed he used PEDs? Should there be an asterisk? Something more? Can you revoke someone's HoF status?

It's an interesting question, and I don't really have an answer for it.

Everything Young is New Again (ALDS Game 3 Postgame Notes 7 October 2007)

It doesn't get any more fitting than the moment Joe Torre took the ball from Roger Clemens and handed it to Phil Hughes.

You have to hand it to Roger Clemens. He's got more heart, more grit, than perhaps anyone else, and you thought, just maybe he could pull out a miracle...but old bodies break easy. He's been with the Yankees since 1999, has two World Series rings, a first ballot Hall-of-Famer for sure...

...but tonight Joe Torre was managing not just for the Yankees season, but for his job, and when it was clear that Roger's heart was in the right place, but his body wasn't, it was an easy call.

The moment the ball was taken from Rocket and given to Phil Hughes, a chill went up my spine.

The past gave way to the future, and the future is bright.

Phil Hughes was brilliant. Watching him pitch tonight was like taking Andy Pettitte in a big game, mixing in a bit of Mike Mussina and the 2003 ALCS game 7, and then taking fifteen years off of the entire thing, and as amazing as his performance was, it's even more amazing when you consider that it was his first time pitching at Yankee Stadium in October.

There was one pitch Phil threw, I don't remember the batter, and I can't tell you if it was a curve or a breaking ball, but I thought it might have been the most beautiful pitch I have ever seen.

It was perfect.


Offensively, you knew that they just needed a spark.

It's hard to say what the spark was, exactly, because three double plays in three innings sit well in no one's stomach (especially when it's Captain Clutch hitting into two of them)...but when A-Rod got that first base hit, you KNEW something was going to happen.

When Hideki Matsui gritted it out on a bad knee for an infield hit, you KNEW that the offensive woes weren't going to last forever.

When Johnny Damon got his at bat that inning, in the fifth, with two men on base, you just wanted a fly ball of some sort. Anything out of the infield would do. When it sailed over the right-field fence, you knew that weight was gone. The hump was gone. The wall was broken through.

When Robbie got the bases-clearing single, it was amusing--you still hate Trot Nixon for those years on the Red Sox, but when he made that error, you jumped for joy...and if you were me, you thought about maybe wanting to give him a quick hug (but not really).


Joba had a Joba inning in the seventh, struggled a bit in the eighth, but managed to get the job(a) done. I have a feeling Yankee Stadium chanting his name in unison, in October...

...well, not really. I don't know how that feels; but I can imagine it.


Mo....

...Well, what needs to be said when you strike out Travis Hafner on three pitches? Mo is GREAT (Greatest Reliever Ever of All Time)...which I think is a much better acronym than GOAT!


Unlike the Phillies, Cubs and Angels, the Yankees did not go quietly, and honestly, if you expected them to not put up a fight, you're not much of a fan.

Yankee Stadium, in October, is surreal. It had to be odd for the Yankees, starting the LDS on the road, but coming back to Yankee Stadium was much more than a wake-up call.

It reminds you why they are the Yankees in the first place.


Game Three said and done now, Joe Torre will manage at least one more game in Yankee pinstripes, the Yankees will hold off the cold and dark of winter for at least one more day...

...and the dream, 27 in 2007 still survives.


In immortal words: "...And we'll see you tomorrow night!"

ALDS Game Three Pregame Notes (7 October 2007)

It does not get any bigger than this. It does not get any more must-win than this.

This is not just a win-or-go-home game; according to The Bergen Record, this is a win-or-Torre's-gone game.

We've been hearing the same thing for years now, but this is the first time the Boss has confirmed it at this point of the season.

What else is there to say?

Win, and we'll live to play another day. We'll have at least one more game of the Joe Torre Era.

Lose, and it's said and done. You can likely put 1996-2007 under "Joe Torre Era" in the history books and start the debate: Joe Girardi or Donnie Baseball?


Hopefully, the home crowd will provide the support that the Yankees need to get something going.

Hopefully when A-Rod comes up to bat, he'll be serenaded with chants of 'MVP', which yes, he really does deserve.

Hopefully Roger Clemens has got game in him yet, and he can grit through this and give the Yankees their chance.

Hopefully the ghosts of Octobers past can come alive one more time.


We will all know so much more in just a few hours.


To steal from 300 yet again:

THIS is where we HOLD them.
THIS is where we FIGHT
THIS is where THEY DIE!

Earn your shields bats boys!

Pregame Notes 25 September 2007

Win tonight, and the Yankees are IN.

Detroit could also lose, but I think I speak for most when I say the Yankees would rather win.

We've got a great chance to do it: playing Tampa, a home away from home, and the Rocket on the mound, and the Yankees bats beyond DUE for a big game--they haven't hit a home run now in at least two games, maybe three...

EDIT: According to Pete Abraham, Rocket has been scratched, and Kei Igawa will be on the mound.

Optimism, everyone, we need lots of it!

Anyway, right now, it's all about how badly the Yankees want to get in--rookie hazing's over (though it was quite a laugh), and you wouldn't know it in Syracuse, but autumn technically started last week...

Seriously. It's 89F outside right now! This isn't even baseball weather; this is Dante weather! The leaves are showing some color, but it's not the same as it is when it's in the low 60s and you get that wonderful smell...

Okay, enough babble.

If I want to watch the Yankees clinch the division tonight, I need to get my geography paper done!

Rocket Refueled, Captain Clutch, Mient Man delivers and Save(io)r Scare (Postgame notes 16 Sept 07)

Derek Jeter lives for moments like these, Roger Clemens proves that a bloody arm beats the heck out of a bloody sock, Doug Mientkiewicz shows that defense really is important, and Mo is apparently an undercover operative for cardiologists everywhere.

You knew a Yankees-Red Sox game, when the last meeting of the season, would be crazy, but, I don't actually think I've stopped shaking yet!

Anyway, better start at the beginning.

Ask anyone on the street what pitching match up they'd most want to see of the weekend, they would have probably said Wang/Beckett, but they should have chosen Clemens/Schilling.

Clemens was a bit wild in the first, but, had Johnny Damon caught that first ball, the Yankees would have gotten out of the inning without a run. He settled down after that, and at one point struck out four Red Sox hitters in a row.

Who says pitching with ligament damage in your arm is a bad idea?

Also in the first, Doug Mientkiewicz made a play that saved the game for the Yankees, by diving to stop a ground ball hit by Varitek (I think it was Varitek), and then getting up and diving again to get to the base before the runner. It saved two runs from scoring, and kept the game at 1-0.

Mientkiewicz also made other great plays, including a grab--and--shuffle to Clemens. Oh, and in case you forget, he was on base when Jeter had his BIG BLOW OF DOOM.

However, before I get to Jeter I should mention that Robinson Cano's solo HR to tie the game should not be without mention; it was an impressive shot and without it, well, we're still playing baseball right now!

Anyway, the fun stuff.

You knew when Jeter came up with two out in the eighth that he had to come through then, and he didn't disappoint. Jeter's made his career and his Stuff-Of-Legend by coming up big in important spots, and there aren't many spots more important than a 1-1 game with two on and two out. Of course, because it wouldn't be baseball otherwise, Jeter had to get to two strikes before he hit it....

Even still, it wasn't the most nerve-wracking part of the night!

That part came in the ninth, when Mo had what can best be described as not-his-best-performance. After all, you'd think that with Varitek, Hinske and Lugo up that it'd be a quick inning, but the lead off walk was telling, and then the HBP...

Deep down, however, you knew it had to come down to Mo and David Ortiz, and you know what? Despite the fact that I'm gonna die of a heart attack before this season's out, I'm glad it came down to that, because the last time I remember the two facing off it was October 2004, and we know what happened then. This time, you have to believe that certain demons were excised.

Anyway, could a Yankees/Red-Sox game end any other way?

You also might be interested in considering:

The Yankees just went 7-2 on their road trip. They just had a better road trip than homestand. We won THREE one run games on the road, too. That had been a major problem for us. Apparently, not so much any more. You have got to believe there are good vibes in the clubhouse tonight.

The division is once again at 4.5 games. It's not likely the Yankees will win it, but it's possible. After all, all it takes is to win your games when the other team loses theirs. Anything can happen.



I said back at the end of July, in my LiveJournal, that we were in for one hell of a finish.

I have not been disappointed.


SCORES AND STUFFS

Kansas City beat Cleveland 4-3. Get this: The winning pitcher's name? Billy Buckner. Yeah. I know.

Baltimore beat Toronto 8-6 in 12. I'm probably alone in thinking this, but if your team is officially just playing out the string, do you really want the game going to 12? Well, I guess since Toronto is still in the WC race they might have had a reason, but, even still...

The Chi Sox beat the Angels 9-7, winning it on a walk off HR from Jim Thome, the 500th of his career. I highly doubt that Jim Thome reads blogs, but in case someone knows someone that knows someone, I offer my congragulations.

Detroit beat Minnesota 6-4, as Detroit keeps pace with New York for the Wild Card. They've won five straight and thus offered the Yankees no help whatsoever.

Tampa Bay beat Seattle 9-2 as Seattle has done everything in its power to have that utter collapse everyone kept talking about back in July and August.

Texas beat Oakland 11-9 and the Yankees should be glad they don't have to play them, as they've been playing rather...uhhh...good baseball of late.

Philadelphia beat the Mets 10-6, completing a sweep and making the NL East just about as interesting as the AL East.

Atlanta beat Washington 3-0, as the team of the 90s refuses to die twelve years after it won the World Series.

Milwaukee beat Cincinnati 5-2. The Brew Crew has already topped it's season total for wins last year, though, in all honesty, if they go 0-12 the rest of the way, would it really surprise anyone?

Houston beat Pittsburgh 15-3 in a game that really does mean nothing.

The Cubs beat St. Louis 4-2 to stay atop the NL Central, as the Cardinals have completely collapsed since the Ankiel HGH story broke.

Colorado beat Florida 13-0. Todd Helton had his 300th career home run, so my congratulations to him as well.

San Diego beat San Francisco 5-1. Does Bonds even still play now?

Arizona beat LA 6-1, tightening their grip on the NL West.



Yankees return home tomorrow to play the Orioles. At least the Yankees will not be facing Guthrie or Bedard...

Pregame Notes 04 September 2007

An update on Clemens's condition can be found here.

There's no doubt that Clemens missing any start is a bad thing; but I'm trying to decide just how bad news this is.

Consider:

Without Clemens, Mussina takes his place. This will, in all likelihood, grant Ian Kennedy another start, probably against Kansas City. I'm sure most of us are anxious to see Kennedy again, he pitched extremely well in his first game, and we want to make sure it wasn't a fluke.

However, as much as I've grown to like Mussina, his numbers this year do not inspire much faith. It's a stroke of luck Clemens's next start would have been in KC; last time Mussina pitched in KC he went six without giving up a run. I was at that pre-Joba game, and Mussina was dealing.

This is by far the worst time of the year for the Yankees to have any pitching questions, and right now the only starter that's been consistently good is Andy Pettitte--yes, he lost on Sunday, but through six he only gave up two runs, easily giving the Yankees a chance to win. Had the Yankees taken the lead, he probably gets pulled early in the seventh, yadda yadda.

[Edit]: Not sure how I missed it, but Wang's been pretty sweet as well. I'm not sure anyone outside the Yankees is actually aware he's got 17 wins now...

This is as big a test as the Yankees could face this year. This is their season.



(And even with all of this, it is nothing compared to what the Cardinals have gone through this year...now, that they're still in the playoff hunt, if THAT is not heart, I'm not sure what is!)


I will update after the game, but not during--readers of PeteAbe's blog will probably know that I get very emotional during games, and my comments I usually make would seriously demean the quality of this blog. So, unless something superhistoric happens--like Arod hitting five home runs--you probably won't hear from me here.


Speaking of home runs, the Yankees haven't hit one since Saturday...