Roger Clemens has been going on bonus points for years, refusing to pass the torch to a younger generation of pitchers as long as the fire continues burning inside him.
After leading the major leagues with a 1.87 earned-run average at 43, two years after his brief “retirement,” the Hall of Fame-bound Houston pitcher may be the only household name on the field in the White Sox-Astros World Series.
But as veteran first baseman Jeff Bagwell slipped a few chunks of ice down Clemens’ back during Houston’s pennant-clinching celebration in St. Louis on Wednesday, the pitcher tried to deflect the spotlight onto the rest of his teammates, particularly the two Astros lifers, Bagwell and Craig Biggio.
“This goes so much deeper for some of these guys who have been here forever and ever,” Clemens said. “To come home and be a part of it is truly special. I’m happy for a lot of guys. My life has changed a little bit here. Not to put a damper on it, but things have changed for me.
“I’m trying to keep my energy up. My fire and my desire is there. And this [NLCS win], for the moment, helps me think of other things. I’m grateful, very thankful and feel very blessed I’ve been able to help and be a part of having this organization go where it’s never been before.”
Clemens will start Game 1 against former Yankees teammate Jose Contreras. With seven Cy Young Awards, 341 wins and two championship rings from his five seasons with the Yankees, there’s really not much more for Clemens to accomplish.
But winning one for his hometown . . . that would be the perfect kicker to an amazing career.
After calling it quits following the Yankees’ loss to Florida in the 2003 World Series, Clemens was coaxed out of retirement by Houston native Andy Pettitte, who’d left New York as a free agent and signed with the Astros.
An elbow injury prevented Pettitte from contributing much to the 2004 postseason run, prompting Clemens to come back one more time so they could try it again.
“It’s unbelievable it’s happened so fast, just our second year of being here,” Pettitte said.
Clemens is appearing in his sixth Series, and Pettitte his seventh. Like a modern-day version of Butch and Sundance, the two baseball mercenaries are on a mission to bring Houston its first Series championship.
“Andy and I . . . we’ve been there and done that,” Clemens said. “But it’s still a proud moment for us. Andy, he’s pitched in some big games and he deserves this opportunity also for what he’s come back from. He was wound pretty tight about it, too, because I think he wanted it for the city just as bad.”
Clemens has been around so long that Sox general manager Ken Williams and hitting coach Greg Walker both faced him during their playing careers, which ended eons ago.
“He was nasty,” Williams said. “He was good then and probably even better now. He has that mean streak about him. I remember getting a hit off him in Boston to drive in a run and I got to first base and he looked at me like, `I can’t believe you got a hit, of all people.’ And I yelled back something like, `Hey, I can get a hit every now and then.'”
Walker recalled a conversation he had about Clemens with Cal Ripken after Ripken told him “the computer” had gotten him.
“What do you mean?” Walker asked.
“You’re in the lineup,” Ripken replied. “You do great off Clemens. You’re leading the team against Clemens.”
Walker thought about it a second and said: “I don’t remember doing well off him.”
“Yeah, you’re hitting .180,” Ripken said. “The rest of us are a lot worse.”
Fortunately for Walker, several of his own hitters have had success against Clemens in their careers, albeit in limited at-bats. Paul Konerko, Jermaine Dye, Scott Podsednik, Joe Crede and Juan Uribe are a combined 23-for-57 against him, a robust .404 average.
Still, facing Clemens on October’s biggest stage isn’t the same as facing him in a regular-season game. And forget about any home-field advantage at U.S. Cellular Field; Clemens had a 1.32 road ERA this season, lowest in baseball since Greg Maddux’s 1.12 road ERA with Atlanta in 1995.
“He’s a freak of nature,” Sox infielder Geoff Blum said. “You add in his age, it makes him more amazing. He knows how to handle himself.”
Even the greatest pitchers usually hit their prime in their late 20s and begin to fizzle out by the mid-to-late 30s. The injuries add up, the arm strength decreases, and the aging process begins to take its toll. Clemens, however, has figured out a way to continue to dominate.
Walker said the key to Clemens’ longevity has been his ability to “reinvent” himself by mastering the split-fingered fastball as he got older.
“I played with Tom Seaver late in his career, and Tom re-invented himself with changing speeds,” Walker said. “For a power pitcher to go that long is unheard of. The split-finger gave him longevity and made him greater.”
In the human gridlock of the Astros’ clubhouse Wednesday night, Clemens said the culmination of the team’s hard work after a 15-30 start had paid off handsomely, making this a season more memorable than most in his illustrious career.
“It took a lot of work from a lot of guys in this clubhouse,” he said. “It made it worth the wait. It made it worth my decision [to return]. I’m glad I got through the season fairly healthy, and now we’re going to take a deep breath and collect ourselves.”
Clemens is back on the October stage, with the White Sox standing in the way of a storybook finish. It’s not exactly the way he and Pettitte had planned it two winters ago, but no matter how crooked the path they took to the World Series, what matters most is they got there.
“It’s really unbelievable,” Clemens said. “It’s nice to have the opportunity to go again. Playing at this time of year never gets old, that’s for sure.”
Clemens’ Series starts
Roger Clemens is 3-0 in his seven starts–none in a Game 1. He has a 1.90 ERA with 48 strikeouts in 47.1 innings, allowing 33 hits.
2003 Yankees
Game 4 vs. Marlins
Clemens went seven innings, scattering eight hits and allowing only a three-run homer in the first. Yankees rallied to force extra innings but lost 4-3 in 12 innings:
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GM IP H R ER BB SO HR
4 7 8 3 3 0 5 1
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2001 Yankees
Games 3 and 7 vs. Diamondbacks
Clemens was masterful in Game 3, allowing only three hits over seven innings and picking up a 2-1 win. He left Game 7 in the seventh tied 1-1, but Mariano Rivera took the loss in relief:
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GM IP H R ER BB SO HR
3 7 3 1 1 3 9 0
7 6.1 7 1 1 1 10 0
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2000 Yankees
Game 2 vs. New York Mets
Clemens led 6-0 after eight, but bullpen staggered and Yankees held on for 6-5 win:
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GM IP H R ER BB SO HR
2 8 2 0 0 0 9 0
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1999 Yankees
Game 4 vs. Braves
A great effort, allowing one run in the eighth of a 4-1 Series clincher:
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GM IP H R ER BB SO HR
4 7.2 4 1 1 2 4 0
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1986 Red Sox
Games 2 and 6 vs. Mets
Clemens didn’t make it through five innings in his first start, a 9-3 Boston win, but left the infamous Game 6 with a 3-2 lead. Baseball fans–and Bill Buckner–know how that turned out.
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GM IP H R ER BB SO HR
2 4.1 5 3 3 4 3 0
6 7 4 2 1 2 8 0
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