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The Clemens Watch
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Topic Started: Jan 5 2007, 04:03 PM (405 Views)
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cmnyy
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Jan 5 2007, 04:03 PM
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cmnyy
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Jan 5 2007, 04:47 PM
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[size=14]Friday, January 5, 2007:[/size]
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Path cleared for Rocket's return to Yankees? It's becoming abundantly clear, isn't it? Roger Clemens has strong options for 2007 and the Astros appear to be third on that pecking order.
Randy Johnson's trade to the Arizona Diamondbacks has put the Yankees in prime position to make him a prime part of their plans for next season. You may think the Yanks wouldn't want to give Clemens the kind of schedule flexibility he's had in Houston. But you'd be wrong.
The Yanks have had discussions with Clemens' agents and have made it clear they'd like for him to begin the season earlier in the year, if he goes to New York. But they know the terms of a return would be up to Roger.
The Boston Red Sox, meanwhile, already have professed their willingness to sign Clemens. Contrary to what some may think, the signing of Japanese star Daisuke Matsuzaka did not preclude any deal for Clemens.
It's turning into a two-team race for the Rocket, who has yet to officially announce a return, but why wouldn't he at this point?
Given skyrocketing salaries, Clemens could well earn $14 million for half a season and still fly home on off days, courtesy of his new team, of course. Talk about a sweet part-time job.
John P. Lopez - Houston Chronicle
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How well the Yankees rotation will be doing come summer remains to be seen, and Clemens is the wild card. A source close to Clemens said this week that the Rocket is leaning toward not having a final re-launch, but it is only the first week of January. The Yankees want him in a big way.
Clemens' agent, Randy Hendricks, wrote last night in an e-mail to the Post: "Nothing has changed on Roger. First, he has to decide whether he will play. If he decides to play, then he will have to decide upon the team, which would be either New York, Boston or Houston. If he does play, it will likely be for a shortened season. I do not expect anything to happen on this matter any time soon."
Being reunited with Andy Pettitte and tutoring a special talent like young Philip Hughes, who is built a lot like the Rocket, may be too much for Clemens to pass up.
KEVIN KERNAN - NY POST
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This winter’s restructuring has included the return of starter Andy Pettitte, a mainstay from the title teams who signed a one-year, $16 million contract. The Johnson deal also frees up money to sign the free agent Roger Clemens, who pitched in four World Series for the Yankees.
Clemens’ agent, Randy Hendricks, has advised him to wait until midseason to return, a strategy that worked well in Houston last summer. The Yankees will let Clemens make his own timetable, but they are determined not to be outbid for him.
The Astros and the Red Sox also have interest in Clemens, but Clemens seems to have grown weary of the Astros’ lack of run support. It would be surprising if Clemens chose to sign with Boston for a lower salary instead of returning to the Yankees, where he could remain teammates with Pettitte, his close friend.
Even if they somehow lose out on Clemens, the Yankees found the Johnson deal appealing because of the players they received in return.
TYLER KEPNER - NY TIMES
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With the Johnson deal nearly complete, the Yankees can turn their attention to replacing the lefty in the rotation and their top target is Roger Clemens. Clemens insists he has not decided whether he will return next season, and one of his agents, Randy Hendricks, said he recommended that the Rocket turn in only a partial season, which Clemens did last season. But the Yankees want Clemens to return to New York with his pal, Andy Pettitte, who signed as a free agent earlier this winter.
BILL MADDEN and ANTHONY McCARRON - NY DAILY NEWS
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There is work to be done, sure, on the rotation. Right now, with Johnson gone, they're counting on Igawa and Pavano to fill two of the spots. But there also are indications that, rather than jump into the pool of lame remaining free agents like Jeff Weaver and Steve Trachsel, they're going to try to lure Clemens back to the Bronx. If there's a better way to spend the money they're saving on Johnson, it's hard to see it from here.
DAN GRAZIANO - THE STAR LEDGER
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cmnyy
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Jan 8 2007, 08:41 PM
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Clemens' agent, Randy Hendricks, reiterated last week that the Rocket has yet to decide whether he will return for a 24th major-league season, but has maintained that the Yankees, Red Sox and Astros would be the only teams Clemens will consider pitching for in 2007. - With News Wire Services
NY Daily News
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The Yankees were going to pursue Roger Clemens even if Johnson had stayed, but now they have more motivation and resources with which to bring back The Rocket. Clemens, 44, hasn't officially decided to pitch again, although that's a no-brainer. What remains in question is how much of the 2007 season Clemens wants to play after pitching essentially half of the 2006 campaign; whether the Yankees will relent on their previously stated policy of no special treatment for Clemens, and whether Clemens would agree to return to the Bronx even if he didn't get breaks in his schedule.
Newsday
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Latest Clemens chapter is still a tale of three cities
There's no question the Yankees are trying their best to land Roger Clemens now that they've sent Randy Johnson to the Diamondbacks. We've also gotten indications that the Red Sox might not be as interested now that they have Daisuke Matsuzaka -- and a payroll heading north of the $148 million threshold.
But not so fast.
When principal owner John Henry was asked how interested the Red Sox are in Clemens, here's what he had to say: "We feel that Roger coming back to finish his career in Boston transcends a lot of obstacles. We feel he is the greatest pitcher in history. We want to see him come full circle. All of New England wants to see this."
Clemens's agent, Randy Hendricks, hadn't heard from the Sox as of a few weeks ago, but recently that's changed.
"We have talked, and Boston is one of three teams special to Roger," said Hendricks. "He has not decided whether he will play, and I don't think he will decide for some time. We have discussed a shortened season, similar to last year. If he decides to play, I am sure he will consider Boston. I also am sure it will be a tough decision, just like last year."
We've been down this road before. Last year, the Red Sox did handstands and somersaults to try to land him before he returned to Houston. Now Clemens's buddy. Andy Pettitte, is back in New York. His other buddy, Al Nipper, is no longer Boston's pitching coach. If the Yankees are in the driver's seat, it still doesn't appear that Clemens will accelerate his decision and pitch any earlier than June.
Boston Globe
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cmnyy
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Jan 11 2007, 04:44 PM
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New York Daily News - http://www.nydailynews.com Rocket set for return, says agent By ANTHONY McCARRON DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER Thursday, January 11th, 2007 It is "more than 50-50" that Roger Clemens will return to the mound this season, according to Randy Hendricks, one of the Rocket's Houston-based agents. Hendricks, in a question-and-answer session with the Houston Chronicle published in the paper's baseball blog yesterday, also said it's likely that Clemens will pitch a shortened season, just as he did for Houston last year. Clemens hasn't made a decision, Hendricks said, but would pitch for only the Astros, Red Sox or Yankees. "I don't think any team is really ahead," Hendricks told the paper. "Obviously, Houston has the home-field advantage." While the Astros are close to Clemens' home, they also had a glaring failure the past two seasons - poor run support for their sterling starting staff. Hendricks, an Astros season-ticket holder, noted the deficiency and even opined that the team plays "uptight offensively" behind Clemens. "Hopefully, if Roger plays for the Astros in 2007, that will change," Hendricks said. Clemens has always enjoyed drama, so a return to Boston, where he started his career as a 21-year-old in 1984, or New York, where he was on two World Series champions, is appealing as well. The Yankees covet Clemens to replace the departed Randy Johnson, and having Andy Pettitte as a pinstriped teammate again might help lure the Rocket back to the Bronx.
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January 10, 2007 Q&A: Agent Hendricks discusses Clemens, Pettitte Randy Hendricks, whose star clients include Roger Clemens, Andy Pettitte and Jason Schmidt, has been one of the most prominent baseball agents in America since the early 1970s, when he and his brother, Alan, started Hendricks Sports Management in the 1970s.
One of the trailblazers in fighting salary arbitration and the owners' collusion, he has often been rated among the most powerful folks in baseball. And as his bio states at www.hendricks-sports.com reminds us, "He has been named to the Sporting News list of 100 Most Powerful People in Sports, including most recently 2003."
An honors graduate of the University of Houston Law School, Hendricks took some time from his schedule to answer some questions regarding Clemens, Pettitte and the state of baseball in Houston.
QUESTION No. 1: This has been a pretty busy winter for you. You have landed some great deals for Russ Springer, Jason Schmidt and a guy named Andy Pettitte. What are your thoughts about the recent spending spree in baseball?
ANSWER: One can always find a correlation between player salaries and revenues in the game. As revenues go up, so do salaries. This has been true for 30 years, so the recent increase in salary levels comes as no surprise. Revenues of $5.2 billion were reported by the 30 clubs in 2006. This is an average of $173 million per club.
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QUESTION No. 2: What is up with Roger Clemens?
ANSWER: Nothing is really new with Roger. Fans need to keep in mind that he intended to retire after the 2003 season. Then, for a lot of reasons, he decided to play for the Astros in 2004. After evaluating the variables, Roger decided in early December 2004 to play again for the Astros in 2005. Roger was pretty beat up after the 2005 season (and really in late August, September and the playoffs in 2005). So he wasn't sure he could or should play another year.
I suggested shortening the season for 2006 so he would not put so much wear and tear on his body. He probably would have retired, except he wanted to play for the USA in the World Baseball Classic. He felt good after that. Koby hurt his hand and needed rehab, so Roger and Koby worked out together in early May of 2006. Roger felt good, he enjoyed his time with Koby, so he decided to take me up on the shortened season recommendation. As everyone knows, he pitched one game at class A (with Koby), one at AA and one at AAA before starting on June 22 in Houston. Roger had several choices, as everyone knows. The Rangers, Yankees, Red Sox and Astros all made known their desire to sign Roger. So did other teams. Ultimately, Roger chose to sign with the Astros.
Roger has very much enjoyed his time with the Astros. He has no complaints with the management or the way in which he has been treated. He is most appreciative of the relationship.
He has to decide what he wants to do for 2007. He hasn't decided. If he does play, it will only be for the Astros, Red Sox or Yankees. He needs to sort through all of the variables, again. One positive is that he came out of 2006 season feeling really good physically.
From my standpoint, and keep in mind that I am an Astros season ticket holder, the most discouraging part with the Astros has been the very poor run support in 2005 and 2006. That puts an incredible amount of pressure on a pitcher to never give up a run, which means a pitcher cannot give himself the luxury of making more than one mistake. I am sure many Astros fans, like me, would expect that the team would think "hey, Roger is pitching, so we'll win; all we have to do is score a few runs."
Instead, the team plays uptight offensively behind him and just seems to have settled into this bad pattern. Hopefully, if Roger plays for the Astros in 2007, that will change.
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QUESTION No. 3: If you had to guess, will Roger pitch again? Where?
ANSWER: I think it is more than 50/50 that Roger will play in 2007, but for a shortened season. As I said, it will be for the Astros, Red Sox or Yankees. I don't think any team is really ahead. Obviously, Houston has the home field advantage. One of the nice things during Roger's time playing for Houston has been how outstanding the fans have been. One of the reasons he decided to play for the Astros was the large number of Houston fans who asked him to do so
QUESTION No. 4. I'm pretty sure I'm right, but some fans want to clarify the status of Roger Clemens' personal services contract. Because the deal only kicks in after he retires, it is correct that Roger can play elsewhere without breaking that contract, correct?
Chronicle file With Joe Savery of Rice, Houston baseball has been on the rise.
ANSWER: Roger's personal services contract with the Astros starts the year after he retires. He can play elsewhere in 2007 (the same was true last year) and it won't affect his personal services contract. The Astros understand Roger's history with the Red Sox and Yankees. He thinks highly of all three teams, and there is nothing wrong with that. And it is fair to say that all three teams think highly of him.
After all, I have made the case, as have others, that he is the greatest pitcher in the history of baseball. He should be considered a local treasure by Houstonians, not someone to boo if he were to play elsewhere for a year.
After all, Nolan Ryan left the Astros to play for the Rangers and everyone loves Nolan.
• • •
QUESTION No. 5: What do you think of the state of baseball in Houston? By that, I mean the Astros, UH, Rice, Texas A&M baseball and the high schools? Do you anticipate another year of top draft picks coming out of this area?
ANSWER: The quality of baseball played in Houston is as good as anywhere in the world. I am continually impressed with how good our local players are, both in college and high school. There are a lot of good coaches and instructors in our area, who only help make these gifted players better. Many players play on all star teams, and they seem to push themselves to play even better. I will always take my chances with the players we have in Texas. California and Florida rank highly as well on talent.
Given the abundant talent pool in our state, it is no wonder that we have so many good high school and college teams. Every year, we have several local high school teams that are good enough to be state champion, only they can't get out of the Houston area in the playoffs.
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QUESTION No. 6: You and I both share a healthy respect for Andy Pettitte. Moreover, I've told you that I thought Andy received a bad rap from some fans who don't realize that Pettitte's decision would have actually been made for him if he the Jon Garland trade had not been canceled after the Astros and White Sox had agreed to the players that would be exchanged. (The White Sox pulled out after reviewing the medical reports about Taylor Buchholz?)
ANSWER: The reaction by many people is disappointing to me and Andy. It is like they forgot the last three years. Both Boston and Anaheim offered him $52 million three years ago. He signed with Houston for $31.5 million. How many fans would have turned down over $20 million guaranteed just to play at home? Andy did. He is glad he did. It was good for everyone. Why some people cannot be grateful for the past three years is difficult to accept.
More to the point, the Astros were more worried about Andy's elbow than were the Yankees. The opposite was true three years ago. That irony is not lost on me. The Astros initially offered Andy a substantial pay cut, for the record. Then, their best offer was the lowest one we had. So it was clear as could be to me that the Astros had a lot of reluctance on Andy, and I attribute that mostly to medical concerns.
Andy is so sensitive that being a free agent has not been easy for him. He hates to disappoint people or to hurt their feelings. So he was torn three years ago, and he was torn, again, this year. First, he wasn't sure he would be healthy enough to play. Second, he wasn't sure his family would want him to play. Third, he wasn't sure he should play due to his father's heart condition. So he needed a lot of time to decide. Meanwhile, the Astros and I had an understanding that the Astros should go ahead and do what they needed to do while Andy decided.
They could have signed Woody Williams, which they did, and traded for Jon Garland, which they almost did, and they then would have told Andy there was no room for him. That would have been acceptable to us because of the circumstances of his indecision.
Andy decided to play in early December, but he wanted a player option for 2008 so he wouldn't have to go through being a free agent again at the end of next year. He said he wouldn't exercise the option if he were hurt and unable to play. The Yankees accepted this and the Astros did not. The Yankees said they would accept Andy's word and the Astros said, in essence, they wouldn't or couldn't. The Astros' reaction was to try to trade for Garland; the Yankees' was to say "when do you want to sign?" Now you tell me, what would you have done in the same situation?
Tim Johnson: AP Hendricks joined Andy Pettitte in Deer Park for the announcement of the pitcher's return to New York.
The Astros were as hesitant this year as the Yankees were three years ago. The Yankees were as aggressive this year as the Astros were three years ago. It shows that we are all people, and respond well to people or companies that say they want and need us.
• • •
QUESTION No. 7: How is Pettitte doing?
ANSWER: Andy feels really good. Fans need to remember how unnatural it is to pitch, meaning it is not the right thing to do, medically speaking. So pitchers break down and wear out. A lot of times veteran pitchers need several months off just to start feeling all right and to recharge their batteries. Fans may think it is a game, but they don't understand there is no reason to play such a game. A player is better off saying he is ready, willing and able to play, in order to maximize his market value, than saying he is not sure if he will play or where he will play. It is not us asking for press attention. It is the press or fans who are reacting to the uncertainty. But that uncertainty is a product of what I described, not some contrived game.
• • •
QUESTION NO. 8: What does it say about the Yankees' decision to sign Andy Pettitte and trusting his elbow one month and then trading Randy Johnson the next month?
ANSWER: It says in bright lights on Broadway that they would rather have Andy Pettitte, and his elbow, than Randy Johnson and his back. Keep in mind, though, that Randy Johnson expressed to the Yankees an interest in going to Arizona, just as he did after he played for the Astros for two months in 1998. Andy is a proven post season winner under the glare and pressure of New York. The Yankees have been missing that attribute since Andy left.
• • •
QUESTION No. 9: You've had quite a successful career. How much longer do you want to do this? What do you view as the highlight of your career?
ANSWER: I love my profession and intend to continue it indefinitely. As for highlights, fighting for free agency for players, when none existed, fighting against collusion by the owners, setting arbitration and contract records, and the relationships I have enjoyed with people, including clients, non player clients, people in management, people in the media and fans, have been notable. I love baseball and enjoy the people connected with it. Some times the competition brings out a lot of emotion, and that goes with the landscape. I don't hold grudges and move on down the road to the next situation.
Houston Chronicle:
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cmnyy
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Jan 18 2007, 10:31 AM
Post #5
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Sorry these are a bit late.
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Sox still plan to make a pitch for Rocket By Jeff Horrigan/ Red Sox Notebook Boston Herald Sports Reporter Monday, January 15, 2007 - Updated: 07:11 AM EST
The Red Sox [team stats] arguably will have the strongest starting rotation in the American League heading into spring training, but that will not preclude them from pursuing Roger Clemens one more time. Owner John W. Henry confirmed in a brief e-mail yesterday that the team intends to make another attempt to sign the seven-time Cy Young Award winner, potentially boosting a rotation that already includes Curt Schilling [stats], Jonathan Papelbon [stats], Tim Wakefield [stats], Josh Beckett [stats], Daisuke Matsuzaka and Jon Lester [stats]. Clemens’ agent, Randy Hendricks, said last week that his client was leaning toward playing another partial season after going 7-6 with a 2.30 ERA in 19 starts for the Houston Astros last season. The 11-time all-star, who has repeatedly put off retirement over recent years, was so battered and sore at the end of Houston’s 2005 National League championship season that he decided to conserve energy last year by working out a deal with the Astros that didn’t result in his activation until June 22. The tactic worked, as Clemens posted ERAs of 2.00, 2.54 and 2.33 in his three full months. The 44-year-old right-hander allowed one or no earned runs in seven of his last eight outings. The Sox pursued Clemens last offseason, presenting him with a film of his accomplishments with the ballclub that was said to have moved him to the brink of tears, forcing him to seriously consider returning to his original franchise before re-upping with his hometown Astros. Over the weekend, Clemens told Houston reporters that he hasn’t made up his mind if he will play again in 2007, but indicated that the scenario is similar to last year at this time. “I don’t think it’s any different than last year,” Clemens told MLB.com. “Three teams are always players in this situation: my hometown team, Boston and the Yankees. “I’m really not any closer to making a decision.” Clemens said that a concern right now is that he’s not as close to being in playing shape as he was one year ago, because he is not preparing for participation in the World Baseball Classic. The Yankees are expected to make an all-out effort to re-sign Clemens, who played for them from 1999-2003, after recently trading Randy Johnson to the Arizona Diamondbacks. New York signed Clemens’ closest friend, Andy Pettitte, to a one-year, $16-million contract Dec. 21 and the left-hander said that he hopes to lure the 348-game winner to the Bronx to join him.
Boston Herald
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Richard Oliver: No matter where he ends up, the Rocket's act is getting old
Web Posted: 01/15/2007 01:22 AM CST
Express-News
There are suggestions that Roger Clemens is strongly considering joining his buddy Andy Pettitte in rejoining the Yankees. Speculation is rampant that the Rocket, taking off from Houston, is ready for re-entry into the Bronx Zoo.
Rumor has it that the future Hall of Famer may choose a killer Boss over the Killer B's.
If so, and the reports add up to reality, the Astros will be forced to respond with a bit of truth of their own sometime soon.
Big deal.
Clemens' act has gotten old, anyway.
Houston owner Drayton McLane returns from business in Poland this week, and there are indications that he is willing to invest millions again in keeping the Rocket on a Minute Maid launching pad.
The deal would be as sweet as last year, with Clemens not required to show up until around June, or even to show up at the ballpark during some stretches. It's a mercenary tactic that worked well enough last season, for both sides, and no one can fault the veteran hurler for looking at a $4 million monthly payday over an abbreviated season.
Yet, recent events in New York have encouraged talk that Clemens would be welcomed there in a similarly comfy arrangement. The Yankees recently shipped out Randy Johnson, opening up a spot on the pitching staff, and general manager Brian Cashman spent last week engaging in long-distance flirtation.
Clemens, he said during Pettitte's introductory news conference, "is kind of like your perfect employee."
Except, of course, for that mercurial, inequitable workday schedule.
Pettitte, for his part, was treated at the media gathering like the appetizer at a steakhouse. His official return, spurred by a one-year, $16 million deal, instead became a feeding frenzy of questions about Clemens.
Finally, even Cashman became frustrated. "This is Andy Pettitte we're talking about here," he said. "We're not talking about Roger Clemens."
But even the Yankees official knew that the only intrigue surrounding Pettitte these days is whether he'll serve as the incentive to bring his buddy back to New York.
They're curious in Houston, too.
The speculation is swirling, and the Astros would love for it to be as empty Minute Maid Park is today.
But if it isn't, the team will have its response ready to go.
Big deal. Clemens' act was getting old, anyway.
Express-News (San Antonio)
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January 14, 2007 -- Roger Clemens reportedly said he's not any closer to deciding whether to pitch in 2007, but the Rocket acknowledged the Yankees, Red Sox and Astros will be in the mix if he plays. Clemens said yesterday he's behind last year's schedule, when he prepared for the World Baseball Classic in March and later trained with his son, Koby.
MLB.com said the 44-year-old righty thinks it'll be increasingly tougher to get into shape.
"Right now, I'm nowhere close," he told the Web site. "I think I'll have to do the same thing probably even more than last time.
"Last year, I had the World games, and working with Koby when he was injured put me ahead of pace. It's going to be more difficult this year."
The seven-time Cy Young Award winner didn't pitch until June 22 last season, and it's expected he won't join any team for spring training or pitch before June if he does come back.
The Yankees have been dubbed the front-runner for his services, given their recent signing of his buddy, Andy Pettitte, and their desire to open their vault.
According to numerous reports, the Yanks also may allow Clemens a lax attendance policy on days he doesn't pitch, which he enjoyed in his Houston home last season. He went 7-6 with a 2.30 ERA in 19 starts for the Astros.
NY Post
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New York Daily News - http://www.nydailynews.com Beware the Rocket Sunday, January 14th, 2007 If the Yankees do win the always much-anticipated and now-annual Roger Clemens Sweepstakes, if they do manage to outbid the Astros and Red Sox for his services, they need to understand that they do not just get his 44-going-on-45 right arm, they also get the questions about whether that crackerjack training regimen we hear about all the time with him is more natural than solar energy. That is the fact of things in a baseball world populated by high-profile suspects now, not the romance of a return to pinstripes for Clemens, or to Fenway Park, Boston. Of all the pitchers in modern history only another Texas righthander - Nolan Ryan - has pitched the way Clemens is pitching, retained the power in his pitches, the way Clemens has in the late innings of his career. And all Ryan ever copped to using was Advil. Now here is another fact of things: Clemens' name has never been part of this story in any substantive way. There has never been a positive test for steroids on him the way there has been for somebody like Rafael Palmeiro, or even a Mets relief pitcher such as Guillermo Mota. Clemens did not testify in front of Congress, never had to raise that right hand the way Mark McGwire did, swear to tell the truth and then take what my friend Bob Ryan of the Boston Globe calls the Fourth-and-a-Half Amendment, the way McGwire sure did. Nobody has ever written a book about Clemens, or thrown one at him. When Clemens' name, along with Andy Pettitte's, was briefly attached to the story about Jason Grimsley, a former teammate of both Clemens and Pettitte whose house got raided by the feds because of performance-enhancing drugs, they both issued angry denials. That particular story, built around names Grimsley allegedly gave to an IRS agent, has moved on, at least for now. Still: The longer Clemens pitches, and pitches at a high level, at his age, do legitimate questions about him go away, or do they intensify, especially if he pitches on the grand stage of the Yankees-Red Sox rivalry once more? Maybe that is the best question of all. What we know is this: At a point when most power pitchers at least start to go into decline, Clemens has become as dominating as he ever was. He has continued to grow in stature after the age of 40 and he has become much more of a baseball immortal than he already was. The way Bonds has. Of course there is no "Game of Shadows" on Roger Clemens. Jose Canseco did not go after him in his own book the way he went after McGwire. Compared to those of Bonds and McGwire, Clemens' reputation is impeccable. And Clemens has a perfect and even angry right to ask for more proof than one leaked story on a search-warrant affidavit on Jason Grimsley. Except. Except we have seen too much over the last 10 years, and that has made baseball fans either skeptics or realists or both. It is ridiculous to think that only star home run hitters were the ones looking for a competitive edge from steroids, or from human growth hormone, which is supposed to be the new drug of choice in sports because there is no real test for it. Profiling of any kind in any area of life is always a risky business, and sometimes a dangerous one. No one is saying that Roger Clemens is guilty just because he fits the performance-enhancing profile. But even Clemens himself has to understand why he's in the conversation now, and isn't leaving it anytime soon.
NY Daily News - Lupica
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NEWS ITEM: Yankees moving toward Roger Clemens
No surprise here: Now that Andy Pettitte is on board – and, more significantly, now that Randy Johnson has been deported – the Yankees will focus their push for The Rocket. This courtship isn't just about money, however. General manager Brian Cashman will have to decide just how far he'll bend the rules to accommodate Clemens' desire to be with his family in Houston between starts.
Unlike the Astros, who gave Clemens carte blanche with his schedule, the Yankees have a room full of stars they've been able to successfully assimilate into one roster. They're understandably wary of setting a precedent that will create a 24-and-1 effect around Clemens.
What's working in Clemens' favor, however, is that Johnson is indeed gone. He's the one Yankee who would've objected to The Rocket's special treatment and would've been even more antisocial than he was in 2006 (if that's possible). Clemens was a more popular figure in the Bombers' clubhouse, and it's hard to believe Derek Jeter or Alex Rodriguez would object if The Rocket was allowed to fly home, say, once a month.
Meanwhile, it's worth noting how Johnson was treated as a returning hero by the Diamondbacks' family last week. Everyone has conveniently forgotten that Johnson all but forced Arizona to trade him after the 2004 season because he was so sick of losing. When his agent, Alan Nero, threatened that Johnson would be unhappy unless he was moved to a contending team, then-GM Joe Garagiola Jr. reportedly answered, "And how would I tell the difference?"
BOB KLAPISCH
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Yanks473
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Jan 22 2007, 10:48 PM
Post #6
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And the Band played on......
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Taken 1/20/07 Posted Image Notice the ring.
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Mantlemurcer
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Jan 23 2007, 09:57 AM
Post #7
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Home of Champions
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- Yanks473
- Jan 22 2007, 09:48 PM
All whores wear rings :smirk:
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amit
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Jan 23 2007, 11:42 AM
Post #8
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Lizard King
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- Mantlemurcer
- Jan 23 2007, 03:57 PM
:laugh:
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Yanks473
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Jan 24 2007, 01:32 AM
Post #9
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And the Band played on......
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- Jan 23 2007, 08:57 AM
- Yanks473
- Jan 22 2007, 09:48 PM
All whores wear rings :smirk:
You disgust me.
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Mantlemurcer
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Jan 24 2007, 09:20 AM
Post #10
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Home of Champions
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- Yanks473
- Jan 24 2007, 12:32 AM
- Mantlemurcer
- Jan 23 2007, 08:57 AM
- Yanks473
- Jan 22 2007, 09:48 PM
All whores wear rings :smirk:
You disgust me.
:lollipop:
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cmnyy
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Jan 26 2007, 10:46 AM
Post #11
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Cashman continued to dispute the idea that the Yankees are the leading candidate to sign Roger Clemens. “Last year, we had interest, and he didn’t choose us, and I don’t think we were second, either,” Cashman said. “I think it would be a mistake to say we’re the team to beat.”
NY Times
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Yankees notes: Clemens in no hurry to sign before spring training Friday, January 26, 2007 BY LISA KENNELLY Star-Ledger Staff NEW YORK -- General manager Brian Cashman said there have been no recent developments toward Roger Clemens' return to the Yankees.
"We're going to concentrate right now on what we have," Cashman said. "He hasn't decided to put himself in play at this time. If he does, he knows there's interest from us."
Clemens' agent, Randy Hendricks, has said Clemens won't reach a decision about if and where he plays until at least spring training. The three teams in the bidding for Clemens, should he play, would be the Yankees, Red Sox and Astros, who he pitched for last season.
Though Cashman speaks to Clemens' agents often about other players on the market, he said the team is not doing anything to advance their standing with the seven-time Cy Young winner.
"Do I feel we have an inside track on the man?" Cashman said. "No."
Various injuries have kept Carl Pavano off the mound since June 27, 2005, but the right-hander won't be a rehab player when he comes to spring training next month. He will have to look forward to a serious chat with Yankee officials, however.
Pavano broke three ribs in a car accident last August but neglected to tell the Yankees about the injury, causing some in the organization to question his commitment to pitching.
"That dialogue is going on as we speak," Cashman said.
Cashman said he has not had any recent conversations with free agent Bernie Williams about bringing back the career Yankee for another year. ... The Yankees finalized their one-year, $750,000 agreement with Miguel Cairo yesterday. Cashman wouldn't say who Cairo will replace on the 40-man roster.
Pitching prospect J.B. Cox did not receive an invitation to spring training because of a fracture in a bone in his throwing hand. Cashman would not disclose how Cox injured his hand, but said that the second-round draft pick was not undergoing disciplinary action.
Cashman said Cox is healing and expected to start his throwing program the first week in February. Cox was 6-2 with a 1.75 ERA and three saves with the Trenton Thunder last season.
Lisa Kennelly may be reached at lkennelly@starledger.com
The Star Ledger
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SILENT ROCKET: Cashman still has not heard from Roger Clemens' camp about the pitcher's plans for 2007, but the GM stressed that the Yankees are interested in the seven-time Cy Young winner if he decides to play this season.
"They know where we sit and how we feel," Cashman said. "There has been no indication that he's definitely playing, let alone when he would decide to play. ... Anybody you ask that question to, other than Roger Clemens, it's just noise. Only he knows."
NY Daily News
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cmnyy
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Jan 30 2007, 03:22 PM
Post #12
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Meanwhile, Clemens said he hasn't decided if he'll pitch this year. He said he's not in good baseball shape, but doesn't plan on playing a full season, if he does pitch again.
"I'll be in spring training (helping with the Astros' minor leaguers) and that's as far as I can tell you," Clemens, 44, said. "I hear everything that everybody else is saying. I get updates about once every two weeks from the Hendricks brothers (agents Randy and Alan). Most of the teams are saying if I decide they don't want me to do anything until May or June.
"If they call, it will be a big decision on my part again. I have fun doing it, but it's a lot of work. That will be a tough decision again. I'm not even interested in playing right now."
Houston Chronicle
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Clemens throws: Roger Clemens threw batting practice to Houston prospects - including his son, Koby - for an hour at Minute Maid Park. But he claimed it was not a sign he has decided to pitch this season.
"I'm not even interested in playing right now," the 44-year-old told the Associated Press. "It's a lot of work. I have fun doing it, but it's a lot of work. That will be a tough decision again."
If Clemens does pitch, his agents have said it would be for the Astros, Red Sox or Yankees.
"I know that if I play it won't be a full season again," he said. "I'm in good shape, but I'm nowhere close to baseball or pitching shape."
THE JOURNAL NEWS
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cmnyy
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Feb 12 2007, 12:03 PM
Post #13
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New York Daily News - http://www.nydailynews.com Nothing rivals Rocket Monday, February 12th, 2007 Maybe it was inevitable The Rivalry would cool a bit after the epic years of 2003 and 2004. And indeed as baseball became more of an equal-opportunity sport the last couple of seasons, producing new October heroes, the Yankees-Red Sox wars lost a bit of their pull. But as we turn our attention to a new season, with spring training at hand, the Yanks and Sox seem likely to return to the center of the baseball universe. After their embarrassing collapse late last summer, the Sox stopped indulging in Theo Epstein's idealistic fantasy to be a higher-payroll version of the Minnesota Twins, living with the ups and downs of a farm system. Instead they threw money around during the offseason like a young George Steinbrenner. Whether it was wise to bring a quasi-star such as J.D. Drew into an environment where the fans demand passion as well as performance remains to be seen, but there is no denying the Sox are loaded with talent again. So let the debate begin even as pitchers and catchers are migrating to Tampa and Fort Myers: Who's better? Considering that the Yankees' superior hitting has not delivered when it counted most in the last three postseasons - four if you count the 2003 World Series against the Marlins - the question has to come down to pitching. Presuming the two Japanese imports, Daisuke Matsuzaka for the Sox, Kei Igawa for the Yankees, come at least mostly as advertised, Dice-K as an ace, Igawa as a No. 5 starter, you have to give the Sox a significant edge in the rotation. There are questions about their starters, to be sure, but the quintet of Matsuzaka, Curt Schilling, Josh Beckett, Jonathan Papelbon and Tim Wakefield has the potential for dominance. At best the Yankees can match up only at the front end of the rotation, with Andy Pettitte, Chien-Ming Wang and Mike Mussina. Obviously that's most important, especially in October, but with as many as four AL Central teams perhaps pushing the wild-card envelope, the Yankees may need more depth in their rotation to make the playoffs for a 13th straight season. That is, unless Yankee fans feel comfortable with Carl Pavano and Igawa as their No. 4 and 5 starters. The looming presence of Roger Clemens as a second-half difference-maker obviously adds to the intrigue, and certainly the Yankees seem to need him more at the moment. But let's come back to that because bullpen performance could have an impact on Clemens' decision. The Yankees seem to have a huge advantage in the bullpen since they can once again call on Mariano Rivera in the ninth inning while the Sox will be holding auditions this spring for a closer. Sox insiders say the club privately is banking on Joel Pineiro, the 28-year-old righthander who teased the Mariners for six seasons as a starter with a power arm and who pitched to a mediocre record of 58-55. Sox scouts believe Pineiro will be more effective as a reliever because he'll rely more on his live fastball rather than trying to trick hitters with his assortment of breaking pitches. That's a leap of faith at the moment, because the Sox have no idea how Pineiro will react to the day-to-day pressure of being a closer. Then again, bullpen performance is harder to predict than rotations, especially in the short term. Only last season rookie Adam Wainwright came out of nowhere to take over for injured Jason Isringhausen and give the Cardinals a Rivera-like performance in October en route to a championship. So who knows? The Sox are hoping hard-throwing Craig Hansen, the kid from St. John's, blossoms as a possible closer after a disappointing 2006. In addition, they acquired Japanese lefthander Hideki Okajima and former Angel Brendan Donnelly to go with veteran righthanders Mike Timlin and Julian Tavarez. The Yankees' pen seems well-stocked, particularly if Scott Proctor and Brian Bruney build on breakout seasons, and, of course, Rivera doesn't suddenly show signs of age at 37. No matter what, Clemens is the wild card out there, and while no one knows whether he'll sign with the Sox, Yankees, or Astros, Sox insiders envision a scenario that could help bring Clemens to Boston. At the moment the Sox are committed to Papelbon as a starter. Despite his brilliance in the role of closer last season, a late-season right shoulder injury convinced the Sox to make him a starter, largely so they can manage the shoulder more easily. With a deep rotation the Sox don't seem quite as desperate to sign Clemens as they were last spring. However, if Pineiro flops and the Sox can't find a reliable closer, there will be pressure to return Papelbon to the bullpen, which in turn will create a greater need for Clemens. On the other hand, the minute Pavano pulls up lame this spring with another injury, the Yankees' brain trust will be on Steinbrenner's private jet to Houston to start the begging in person for Clemens. Camps are about to open. Let the intrigue begin.
Harper - NY Daily News
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SPRING TRAINING PREVIEW: Camp counselor? Roger that Ken Davidoff Baseball
February 11, 2007
Three teams, as you know by now, will be in the running for Roger Clemens' services when The Rocket inevitably decides to pitch for a 24th big-league season. But only one of those clubs - its executives, major-leaguers and minor-leaguers - will be bumping into Clemens on a somewhat routine basis.
To an already unusual situation - Clemens is, after all, baseball's first steady part-time player - the Astros will pile on another odd dynamic, just as they did last year. Clemens will be in and out of Houston's camp, helping the minor-league pitchers, part of his personal-services arrangement with the Astros that kicks in upon his retirement, and he'll also watch his son Koby, a minor-league third baseman.
The Yankees and Red Sox, on the other hand, will get a brief visit, at best, from the pitcher they covet.
"It's win-win for us," Astros general manager Tim Purpura said Friday. "We like having him around and available to our young players. He teaches what we teach. Our staff looks forward to it, because he throws batting practice for 55 minutes."
Of course, Clemens is the only minor-league pitching instructor who can provide his fellow staff members not only rest but perhaps a ring.
"I think everyone is on the same page," Purpura said. "We have gone and built up our club, done what we need to do to feel like we can compete and contend; we haven't stood around waiting for things to happen.
"Admittedly, we have some payroll flexibility. We've built our team and we're going to go out and see how we look this spring. We'll see if we need any mid-course corrections."
In the wide-open National League Central, there's no reason the Astros can't compete. Andy Pettitte is gone and Clemens remains uncommitted, but in their place are Woody Williams and Jason Jennings; not too bad. The run-starved lineup imports a premier middle-of-the-lineup hitter in Carlos Lee, and Mark Loretta will provide plate discipline and positive character. They should give Clemens reason to consider them come Memorial Day.
To underestimate the Astros' chances in the Clemens sweepstakes would be a mistake. Yes, the Yankees will pay the most and have Joe Torre, Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada and of course Pettitte as recruiters, and the Red Sox offer the seven-time Cy Young Award winner a chance to return to his roots. Although, it should be noted, the Red Sox's deep starting rotation seems to have softened both sides' interests in a reunion.
Yet Clemens is most popular in Houston, where he has catapulted baseball above football (or at least come close to doing so). The Astros' management gives him incredible freedom on his schedule, and his family, of course, is there. And the righthander is savvy enough to appreciate how much easier it is to pitch in the NL.
"I don't look at it that way," Purpura said when asked about the Astros' perceived home-field advantage. "We've got the home-field advantage as far as proximity to his house, and that's it. Maybe there's familiarity here, but there's familiarity with the other clubs.
"Certainly with the Yankees, and I think he's gotten to know the people in Boston from their courting of him [last year]. I don't think he's going to base his decision on that."
Only Clemens knows that. But there's little doubt he loves being discussed, analyzed and - while he's in Astros camp - wooed by his past and possibly future teammates.
Newsday
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cmnyy
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Mar 17 2007, 04:56 PM
Post #14
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Rocket update
Roger Clemens was spotted throwing batting practice to one of his kids on one of the back fields of the Osceola County Sports Complex while the Yankees were taking BP.
Torre said he didn't feel the need to seek out Clemens and make a recruiting pitch. The Yankees just saw him 10 days ago in Tampa. "Whether he's made up his mind or not, I can't tell you," Torre said. "I think Roger has it all figured out anyway, whatever it is."
Newsday
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KISSIMMEE, Fla. -- Out on a practice field, Roger Clemens was throwing batting practice to some minor league hitters when the Yankees' bus arrived.
By the time the Yankees finished batting practice at Osceola County Stadium, Clemens was said to have showered and left.
Mornings for Clemens have meant keeping fit at Astros camp, while pondering a midseason comeback for the Yankees, Houston or Boston.
"I think Roger has it all figured out anyway, whatever it is," Joe Torre said.
The Record
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cmnyy
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Mar 20 2007, 02:19 PM
Post #15
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Clemens Will Not Decide About His Baseball Future Until May
March 19, 2007 7:53 a.m. EST
Todd Sikorski - All Headline News Sports Reporter Orlando, FL (AHN) - Baseball fans who are wondering what Roger Clemens' plans consist of this year will have to wait a while longer. The sure to be Hall-of-Fame pitcher revealed on Saturday that he will not decide until May, at the earliest, whether or not he will play baseball this year. Also, he said if he plays, he will only suit up in a uniform belonging to one of three clubs. The lucky teams include the Houston Astros, the New York Yankees, and the Boston Red Sox.
Clemens' comments were reported on Major League Baseball's official website.
Probably the most telling aspect to the interview was his revelation that none of the three clubs were interested in his services right now.
"From what I understand, all three teams want to see where they are as far as their rotation and how their pitching lines up," he told MLB.com. "Not one of them wanted an April or May deal anyways. All three teams look good as far as their pitching staffs go. My agents will let me know if any when they call."
Why any team would not be currently interested in the seven-time Cy Young Award winner is amazing. However, the Rocket has retired from baseball a couple of times only to return to the game shortly later. The latest was last year when he saw action in the last half of the season for the Houston Astros. He compiled a 7-6 record but with an extremely impressive 2.30 ERA.
Clemens doesn't seem to be itching to get back on the mound just yet. In fact, he is enjoying his time working on business ventures and helping coach minor league camps with the Astros organization this spring training.
If Clemens returns to the baseball diamond this season, it will be pitching in a game instead of coaching. He wavers back and forth about pitching again, but coaching is something he does not want to do full time.
As for which team Clemens might pitch for, he was not giving many indications on Saturday. He said each team he might pitch for has its own strengths.
For example, he said he has many friends on the Yankees squad but his family resides in Houston, close to the Astros' stadium, which is important to Clemens also. As for the Red Sox, his biggest legacy is with the club and he loves Boston's history.
www.allheadlinenews.com
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Notes: Roger Clemens will wait until May before deciding whether to pitch this season. Only the Yankees, Red Sox and Astros are under consideration. "From what I understand, all three teams want to see where they are as far as their rotation," Clemens told MLB.com. "Not a one of them wanted an April or May (deal) anyways." Clemens also said he would have re-signed with the Yankees in 2004 had Andy Pettitte stayed in pinstripes. That could be a sign he intends to sign with the Yankees this time. ...
THE JOURNAL NEWS
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cmnyy
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Apr 24 2007, 09:56 AM
Post #16
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Nothing really new to report (just some opinion), but I felt like we needed something.
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Yankees need Clemens immediately, if not sooner Wallace Matthews
April 22, 2007
BOSTON
So when exactly does Roger Clemens get here?
The question was posed to Brian Cashman as a sort of joke in the gloom of the visitors' clubhouse yesterday after a game as predictable as any Yankees-Red Sox encounter ever gets.
First the general manager laughed. Then he deflected. "Well, you know, we get [Hideki] Matsui back on Monday and [Chien-Ming] Wang back on Tuesday," he said.
And Mike Mussina threw 30 pitches off a bullpen mound yesterday, which was about the best news of a miserable day.
But in reality, there was only one acceptable answer to the question. As soon as possible.
Because what happened to the Yankees yesterday and what is likely to happen to them tonight is simply not acceptable, coming into Boston with one major-league starter and two minor-league call-ups for a series against the only team realistically standing between them and October.
The Yankees' new policy of fiscal restraint is admirable in many ways and many cases. But this isn't one of them. The season is only 16 games old, the Red Sox are only three games in front and as of today, the Yankees still have only one dependable starting pitcher.
"I wouldn't say we're hanging on," Joe Torre said. "My feeling is, we just need to hold our own here."
Who was the last Yankee manager to say a thing like that? Stump Merrill?
For the first time in their recent history, the Yankees are living like mortals, with not enough pitching, with too many key guys hurt and with no easy answers in sight.
This is the kind of thing that happens with regularity in Pittsburgh and Kansas City and Tampa Bay, but not in the Bronx and certainly not at Fenway when the Yankees come to town, even if the season is a mere 16 games old.
Yesterday, the Yankees asked a kid pitcher, Jeff Karstens, to hold the Red Sox at bay while they were trying to dent Josh Beckett - who shut them down as a Florida Marlin - with a bottom third of the batting order more suited to Scranton.
As you can guess, it did not end well, even if it still came down to the ninth inning, tying run at the plate and Derek Jeter and Bobby Abreu coming to bat. These teams don't know how to play any other kind of game, but still, it was mere illusion: Jeter, Abreu and Alex Rodriguez, waiting in the hole, had been a combined 1-for-8 with four strikeouts against Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon.
By the time he had finished with them, it was 1-for-10 with five strikeouts, the Red Sox had a 7-5 win, and tonight, the Yankees will ask another kid, Chase Wright, to stare down Daisuke Matsuzaka in order to avoid their first sweep at Fenway since 1990, when Clemens was a Red Sox and Deion Sanders a Yankee.
"Geez, I was looking forward to seeing Phelps catch Mo," Torre said ruefully.
It was funny, but it was the kind of thing you expect to hear from Charlie Manuel. But right now, that's how bad things have become. Had the Yankees tied the score against Papelbon, Mariano Rivera, the loser in Friday night's 7-6 series opener, would have been throwing to Josh Phelps, who in the absence of Jorge Posada has been thrust into the role of emergency catcher.
Now you know why Torre managed Friday's game as if it were Oct. 20 rather than April 20, going against his own spring edict against using Rivera for more than one inning a mere three weeks into the season, removing Jason Giambi for a pinch runner in a desperate effort to squeeze out one more run with a four-run lead, and going to the drawn-in infield against Alex Cora, who dunked one over Jeter's head to knock in the go-ahead run in the eighth inning.
Torre likes to say these games against the Red Sox, especially in April, are no more important than a game against the Royals, for instance, but his actions Friday said otherwise. With the pitching staff he brought to Boston, he knew he might win one game here at best, and that was it.
Now he and the Yankees face Dice-K, and although the party line is that the Yankees are no more unfamiliar with Matsuzaka than the Red Sox are with Wright, nobody spent $51.1 million just for the privilege of talking to today's Yankee starter.
"I have no idea what he has," Jeter said. "From everything I hear, he's good. I just hope he won't be that good tomorrow."
Even if he isn't, and Wright comes up better than anyone could possibly hope, it is a one-day fix. Right now, the Yankees need long-term help.
Exactly when and where is that Rocket expected to land? For the Yankees' sake, the answers better be in the Bronx, and soon.
Copyright 2007 Newsday Inc.
Newsday
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Red Sox look to be best fit for Clemens
Bob Matthews staff columnist
(April 24, 2007) — If I were Roger Clemens and weighing the options for another comeback this summer, I'd cast my lot with the Boston Red Sox rather than the Houston Astros or the New York Yankees.
The Red Sox would give him the best chance to pitch in a World Series and allow him to end his career where it began.
Clemens has 348 career wins, including 192 for Boston to share the team record with Cy Young. He'd join Curt Schilling, Daisuke Matsuzaka and Josh Beckett to form baseball's best four-man starting rotation. A lineup with David Ortiz, Manny Ramirez and J.D. Drew would provide ample batting support.
Houston isn't likely to make the playoffs and the Yankees might need more pitching help than Clemens could provide.
Clemens should wear a Red Sox cap on his future Hall of Fame plaque no matter where he pitches his last game, but finishing his great career where it began would complete the circle and remove all doubt.
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
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cmnyy
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May 5 2007, 02:35 PM
Post #17
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May 4 - NY Daily News:
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Count on staff age to Rocket
By MIKE LUPICA DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER
Posted Friday, May 4th 2007, 4:00 AM
Brian Cashman, whose job should be more on the line as Joe Torre's this season, has stated repeatedly that it's his intention is to make the Yankees younger and less expensive, especially when it comes to Cashman's pitching staff. It is a nice long-term plan. But if Cashman wants to be around long enough to implement that plan, he better hope some of the old, expensive guys he has working for him now do a lot better in the short term, the way Andy Pettitte and Mike Mussina did yesterday.
Pettitte only went six innings and Mussina went five, coming off one of the hamstrings injuries that actually got the Yankee strength coach fired on the front page of the New York Times the other day. But they were six solid innings for Pettitte, despite a big pitch count, and five better ones from Mussina, who is the best free agent pitching decision Cashman has ever made.
So maybe this day was a real start for the Yankees in all ways, even if it did come against the Rangers.
"We still have veterans," Cashman said one day this spring. "But now they're a bridge to the young guys."
For years, there were no young guys, at least until Chien-Ming Wang dropped out of the sky. The Yankees have tried to build another championship team, and that doesn't just mean an AL East championship team, with old and overpaid pitching. It has gotten them one first-place finish after another in the East, and a series of postseason flops. Joe Torre said the other day that he kind of laughs when he hears that the Yankees haven't won a World Series since 2000, since they hadn't won one since 1978 when he got here.
You know who probably doesn't think the whole thing is a laugh? The old man spending the money, sometimes spending $100 million on a pitching staff when whole teams don't cost that much.
Now, even in this transition year for Yankee pitching, their savior is somehow supposed to be Roger Clemens. We are supposed to believe that if the Yankee don't throw more even money at Clemens than they have already, the monuments in Monument Park will topple over and all will be lost in the Bronx. If Clemens really is making Yankee starts in August, he will be doing it at the age of 45.
Over the past several years the Yankees have gone through starting pitching, some of it big-ticket starting pitching, at a frightening rate. Jose Contreras was here for 27 starts, Javy Vazquez, who was going to be a horse for years, was here for 32, Jaret Wright was here for 40 starts, Jeff Weaver for 32, Kevin Brown, whom they got for Weaver, for 35. Randy Johnson came for 67 starts in his 40s, David Wells came back to make 61 starts at 39 and 40. When Clemens made his last World Series start for the Yankees in 2003, he was already 41.
The bullpen has been a parade of Tom Gordons and Steve Karsays and Paul Quantrills. Now it is Kyle Farnsworth and Luis Vizcaino and Brian Bruney and Sean Henn trying to make it easy for Torre again, the way it was when he had Nelson and Stanton to set up Rivera and the game was over if the Yankees had a lead in the seventh.
Maybe this staff and this season will be different. Maybe by the second half of the season, Wang and Phil Hughes and even Kei Igawa will give the Yankees enough of a staff that they don't have to grovel in front of Clemens, who ran out on them after the 2003 World Series.
Maybe this will be a season when the Yankees don't end up throwing their oldest guys in the biggest games.
Oh, sure. When it was all on the line for the Yankees in Game4 of the 2002 playoffs, when they needed a game to keep the season going, Torre gave the ball to Wells. He was 39 that day and could not make it out of the fifth inning.
The next year the Yankees were 2-2 against the Marlins in the World Series, and Torre gave the ball to Wells again. He left after one inning with a bad back and the Yankees never won another game against the Marlins and haven't been back to the World Series since.
The next year, when it was all falling apart for the Yankees against the Red Sox, the starter for Game 7 was a completely shot 39-year old named Kevin Brown. Then came Vazquez. Both of them got shot out of a cannon.
The next year, 2005, first round against the Angels again, the game turned because another starter the Yankees had picked up for huge money on the back nine of his career - Randy Johnson, 42 - had nothing in Game 3 at Yankee Stadium and then Mussina didn't do the job in Game 5. Last year it was Johnson at 43 losing Game3 against the Tigers, the last start of his two-year Yankee career before Jaret Wright was the losing pitcher in Game 4. It was Wright's last Yankee start. Another wrong pitching hire. The Yankees signed Wright as a free agent the same winter they made the sparkling decision to throw $40 million at Carl Pavano, who has started just slightly more games here than Jessica Steinbrenner.
"I'm trying to speed up the process of getting younger," Cashman kept saying all spring.
Somehow that process is supposed to include a 45-year old pitcher. Please excuse smart Yankee fans if they think someone is trying to sell them a bridge here, not build one.
May 2 - NY Daily News:
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ROCKET TIME: With the calendar turned to May, the Roger Clemens watch will be hotter than ever. Brian Cashman may be in Arlington with the Yankees, but the GM said he has no plans to travel to Houston, where Clemens and his agents are located. "I've had every conversation I could have," Cashman said. "They know where we stand."
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Venom
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May 6 2007, 03:33 PM
Post #18
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May the Force be with you
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YANKEES SIGN CLEMENS ON MAY 6TH 2007!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Giambi_MVP_25
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May 6 2007, 03:35 PM
Post #19
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Misunderstood Genius
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Giambi_MVP_25
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May 6 2007, 03:35 PM
Post #20
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Misunderstood Genius
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- Quote:
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With the calendar turned to May, the Roger Clemens watch will be hotter than ever. Brian Cashman may be in Arlington with the Yankees, but the GM said he has no plans to travel to Houston, where Clemens and his agents are located. "I've had every conversation I could have," Cashman said. "They know where we stand."
;-)
:liar:
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Venom
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May 6 2007, 03:37 PM
Post #21
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May the Force be with you
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- Quote:
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According to the New York Post, Clemens will be making $20-24 million in a prorated contract.
:$$$: :$$$: :$$$:
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HomieYank
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May 6 2007, 03:46 PM
Post #22
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This was all Cashman :yes:
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