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Post by philinla on May 6, 2007 14:42:05 GMT -5
I'm glad he's back, and the season just got even more interesting.
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Post by David Goodman on May 6, 2007 14:44:54 GMT -5
I am too. It will be awesome having him and Phil as the back ends of our rotation. Bye bye Igawa.
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Post by philinla on May 6, 2007 15:07:50 GMT -5
He's got his Yankee cap and workout shirt on at his presser.
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Post by philinla on May 6, 2007 15:17:41 GMT -5
He looks forward to talking with the kids.
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Post by philinla on May 6, 2007 15:21:08 GMT -5
Cash is telling the story of how this happened, it's pretty fascinating.
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Post by philinla on May 6, 2007 15:21:55 GMT -5
Seems like Hank and Hal are back in leadership roles.
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Post by pauliesgirl on May 6, 2007 15:34:42 GMT -5
This is so exciting!
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Post by philinla on May 6, 2007 15:38:26 GMT -5
Cash talking about the influence he expects Rocket to have on Hughes, Ohlendorf, Clippard etc.
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Post by philinla on May 6, 2007 15:49:19 GMT -5
Maybe he can help straighten out Farnsworth.
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Post by philinla on May 6, 2007 15:52:51 GMT -5
Damon just said the scene in the 7th with Roger and the crowd is one of the highlights of his career.
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Post by jumbo on May 6, 2007 21:46:06 GMT -5
May 7, 2007
Clemens Is Returning to the Yankees
By TYLER KEPNER
It was a news bulletin delivered before 52,553 fans on a glorious spring day at Yankee Stadium, where the season is suddenly alive with hope again. The man with more victories than any living pitcher was holding a Yankees microphone, addressing the crowd with a splash of the high drama that has punctuated his career.
“Thank y’all,” said Roger Clemens, who was wearing a business suit, a crew cut and a Yankees World Series ring as he stood in a box above home plate. “Well, they came and got me out of Texas, and I can tell you it’s a privilege to be back. I’ll be talking to y’all soon!”
Then Clemens pumped his fist as Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman crouched behind him, beaming. For a $28 million salary — prorated based on the date he is added to the major league roster — Clemens has returned to the Yankees, who trail the Boston Red Sox by five and a half games in the American League East but got a pitcher both teams wanted.
“Make no mistake about it,” Clemens, who hopes to be ready by late May, said later at a news conference. “I’ve come back to do what they only know how to do here with the Yankees, and that’s win a championship. Anything else is a failure.”
A sense of desperation has hung over the Yankees for weeks, cresting with a 9-14 April that was followed last Tuesday by a hamstring injury to the prized rookie Phil Hughes during a game in Arlington, Tex.
The Yankees acquired Clemens in a trade from Toronto in 1999, then watched helplessly as he retired after the 2003 World Series, his fourth in five years with the team.
Clemens changed his mind and kept playing, joining his hometown Houston Astros for three more seasons. Cashman tried to sign Clemens in March and consummated this deal on Friday night, when he talked with the Yankees’ team president, Randy Levine, and chief operating officer, Lonn Trost, about how Clemens might make a grand entrance.
“We thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be great if he showed up and announced it himself on the scoreboard?’ ” Cashman said, reflecting on the day in a telephone interview last night. “It just seemed like it would be a real nice touch, and only someone of his type of stature could really pull it off.
“It was one of those neat moments in Yankee history. People who had tickets today will always remember that and always have something to talk about. I got goose bumps. He’s just such a presence.”
The fans erupted after the announcement, with the loudest and longest applause of an afternoon in which the Yankees would cruise to a victory over the Seattle Mariners, 5-0. Many fans immediately took out their cellphones to share the news.
The Yankees were in the dugout at the time of the announcement, getting ready for the bottom of the seventh inning. Manager Joe Torre said the players were not aware of the news beforehand, though some said they knew, including Derek Jeter and Jason Giambi, who had regularly sent messages to Clemens since spring training, urging him to return.
“The Yankees were in both of my ears the whole time,” Clemens said, “and that was well before they had the problems they’ve had on the mound.”
Those problems have manifested themselves in a carousel of pitchers who have started games. Tonight, the Yankees will start Matt DeSalvo, their sixth rookie starter this season. DeSalvo will be their 10th starter over all, the most any team has used in the first 30 games of a season.
Three starters have missed time with hamstring injuries, leading Cashman to fire the team’s strength coach, Marty Miller, last Wednesday. The veteran starter Carl Pavano has ligament damage in his right elbow and has told teammates and club officials that he wants to have reconstructive surgery.
When Hughes was injured, Cashman was on that trip to Texas, a rare road visit for him, and one with an ulterior motive.
Cashman wanted to fly to Houston to meet in person with Clemens and his agent, Randy Hendricks. But Hendricks had business elsewhere.
“If you saw me walking around in Texas looking the way I was looking, now you’ve got a little secret to why,” Cashman said. “Here, as I was trying to get Randy Hendricks on the phone, he was text-messaging me: ‘I can’t talking to you now, I’m in Fenway Park.’ ”
But Hendricks said he did not leave Fenway thinking that the occupants, the Red Sox, had the same timetable as Clemens. Hendricks said the Red Sox and the Astros wanted Clemens, who turns 45 in August, to return in mid-June or later. Clemens is nearly ready now.
“I put it to Roger: ‘Look, you’re either going to get ready to play now with the Yankees, or you’re going to have to delay it for another month. Which is it?’ ” Hendricks said. “He’s Roger Clemens. From my point of view, when he says he’s ready to play, teams should listen.”
The Red Sox had obvious appeal to Clemens for the historical symmetry they would bring to his career. Clemens played his first 13 seasons in Boston, and he is tied with Cy Young for the franchise record in victories.
But Clemens retains strong ties to the Yankees, with seven former teammates in the clubhouse as well as Torre, whom Clemens called a special man.
And then there is George Steinbrenner, 76, the Yankees’ principal owner, whose box Clemens visited in spring training when he dropped by Legends Field to watch his close friend Andy Pettitte pitch. Clemens has not said what Steinbrenner told him then, but it made an impact.
“He had some words for me, which I’ll keep with me forever,” Clemens said. “I might share those when this season is all said and done. I’ll keep those close to my heart for now.”
Clemens is second on the career list in strikeouts, with 4,604, and eighth in victories, with 348. He went 7-6 with a 2.30 earned run average in 19 starts for Houston last season, but the year ended awkwardly.
On the last weekend of the regular season, a report surfaced in The Los Angeles Times in which the former Yankee Jason Grimsley, in an affidavit, identified Clemens and Pettitte as players who had used performance-enhancing drugs. Soon after, the United States attorney Kevin V. Ryan said the report contained “significant inaccuracies” but did not elaborate.
Pettitte left the Astros to sign with the Yankees, and Clemens was also a free agent who had not committed to continuing his career. If he did, though, Clemens planned to start his season later, as he did in 2006, to keep his body fresh for the stretch drive.
Cashman had a standing offer to Clemens of $25.5 million, from a meeting with Hendricks in March. The Yankees’ recent urgency gave Clemens leverage in negotiations and essentially cost the Yankees an extra $2.5 million.
Privately, the Yankees had been determined since last winter not to be outbid for Clemens, who made a prorated portion of a $22 million salary with the Astros last season.
The Yankees expected the Red Sox to make a substantial offer, and while they believe the Red Sox did that, an official directly involved in the talks said that Boston offered Clemens $10 million less than the Yankees, and the chance to be part of a five- or six-man rotation, depending on his preference. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because he did not want to violate tampering rules.
Cashman said Clemens would work out for the next week and a half in Lexington, Ky., where Clemens’s son Koby plays for an Astros farm team. Cashman said the Yankees would want Clemens to pitch for their minor league affiliates while he gets his arm in game shape.
Clemens’s contract allows him some flexibility in his schedule, giving him the freedom to return to Houston on days he is not scheduled to pitch. The Yankees refused to do that last season, a stance that Cashman said disqualified the Yankees from signing him.
Players have since told Torre they would not object to special treatment for Clemens, who will have the same locker and uniform number, 22, he had before.
“I could care less,” Giambi said. “I’d carry his bags for him, just as long as he is on the mound.”
Clemens said he might not need as much time at home anymore. His two oldest children have graduated high school, and his two younger sons seem to want him to be a Yankee again.
“They love Derek Jeter and A-Rod, so they’re as excited as ever that I’m back here in New York,” Clemens said. “I’m sure they’ll be pestering some of my teammates quite a bit.”
David Picker and Michael S. Schmidt contributed reporting.
Copyright 2007 The New York Times Company
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Post by philinla on May 6, 2007 22:03:18 GMT -5
This was a great day for the Yankees.
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Post by philinla on May 7, 2007 15:29:45 GMT -5
Rocket's career record when his team scores 4 or more runs: 260-13.
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Post by jumbo on May 10, 2007 19:37:52 GMT -5
Clemens could make season debut at Fenway Torre not worried about hype, saying ‘it’s going to be a circus anyway’ The Associated Press Updated: 8:10 p.m. ET May 10, 2007 NEW YORK - Roger Clemens could make his season debut with the New York Yankees at Fenway Park, and that’s fine with manager Joe Torre. “It’s going to be a circus anyway, It doesn’t really matter,” Torre said Thursday. “Wherever it falls, it’s going to fall.” Clemens agreed Sunday to return to the Yankees and has been working out this week in Lexington, Ky., where his son, Koby, plays for a Houston Astros’ farm team. Roger Clemens is scheduled to arrive at the Yankees’ minor league complex in Tampa, Fla., next Monday and to have a bullpen session the following day. “We’ll know more after he throws his bullpen,” Torre said. “He’s in good shape. The only thing he hasn’t done is competed.” When he rejoined the Houston Astros last year, Clemens agreed to a contract on May 31, made three minor league starts and returned to the majors on June 22. The Yankees would like him to pitch in minor league home games, where they are in control of grooming the mounds. Class A Tampa is home against Fort Myers from May 17-19, Double-A Trenton is home against Portland from May 21-24 and Triple-A Scranton is home against Indianapolis and Toledo from May 24-31. New York, 1-5 against Boston this year, plays a three-game series at Fenway Park from June 1-3. Torre wasn’t bothered by those who criticized the Yankees and Clemens for a provision in the $28,000,022 contract that allows the seven-time Cy Young Award winner not to travel with the team at all times. “I think it’s just an example of how many people have opinions on things,” Torre said. “I always find that opinions are dangerous when you do it from afar. We don’t know what the situation is. “Yes, it is in his contract. That’s part of the deal but we don’t know if it’s going to be an issue. So until that time comes, I’m not even going to really concern myself with it,” he said. © 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. URL: www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18601730/ |
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Post by stevej on May 10, 2007 20:49:31 GMT -5
I'm hoping he pitches on the road for Tampa while I am there next week. They have 3 in Dunnedin, just up from St Pete.
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Post by philinla on May 11, 2007 13:42:21 GMT -5
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Post by pemoco on May 12, 2007 13:53:03 GMT -5
I'll say this once and be brief about. I don't want to consistently grouse and be negative, but this is a bad move.
I readily accept that there aren't a lot of options for a decimated rotation, but I don't think Clemens contributes nearly what people seem thinkhe is going to be able to. He is not going to win 10 games, he is not going to pitch 100 innings. His #'s last year were a bunch of >6 inning performances against NL rosters. It's not going to be as easy facing the lineups of the AL East. And if he is still going when autumn rolls around I guarantee that weather will be a factor.
He is bringing a huge and overly-sensitive ego into a clubhouse that is already a tempestuous mixed bag of personalities. There is a lot of public speak about how popular he is and what a good teammate he is, but from what I have heard that is far from a universally-held view.
This whole thing is way more sizzle than steak and I really don't see it working out well.
I know I am in the minority. So y'all go ahead and tell me I'm wrong and I will let it lie. I've said my piece and am not going to make a seasonlong rehash out of it.
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Post by philinla on May 12, 2007 18:55:08 GMT -5
Your objection is noted. Let's win tonight.
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Post by pemoco on May 12, 2007 19:06:19 GMT -5
Agreed. And tomorrow!!
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Post by jumbo on May 13, 2007 9:45:30 GMT -5
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Last Update: 10:35 AM EDT
OLDER ROGER WON'T BE ROCKET OF OLD: SCOUT
By JOEL SHERMAN
May 13, 2007 -- When Randy Johnson crossed from the NL to the AL to join the Yankees, several scouts warned that he was not the same pitcher of memory. That he threw his fastball less often and less hard than in the past, and that precision was now integral to his game. A scout who covered the Astros the past few years essentially provided the same scouting report on Roger Clemens.
"Clemens throws in the upper 80s to low 90s now," the scout said. "He is more a pitcher than a guy who just blows you away. He will be better than Johnson because unlike Johnson, he has always known how to pitch, but he is not the Clemens of old. He will be good, not great. He can throw multiple pitches for strikes, but he just does not have consistent power stuff any more."
NEW YORK POST is a registered trademark of NYP Holdings, Inc.
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Post by philinla on May 13, 2007 9:47:12 GMT -5
Pettitte's doing well, I don't see when Rocket wouldn't still be better.
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Post by jumbo on May 14, 2007 11:19:57 GMT -5
Clemens' minor-league prep plan
Posted: Monday May 14, 2007 04:42AM ET
According to Joe Torre, Roger Clemens will throw a bullpen session Tuesday in Tampa, Fla., and will probably start on Friday at Legends Field against the Twins' Class A Fort Myers team. After that, Torre said, Clemens will advance a level to Class AA Trenton, meaning that he could pitch May 23 against Portland. Torre said he did not know if Clemens would need two or three minor league starts to be ready.--New York Times
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Post by philinla on May 14, 2007 16:24:09 GMT -5
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) - Roger Clemens made 47 throws during a seven-minute session in the outfield on Monday during his first workout at the New York Yankees' minor league complex.
Clemens is scheduled for a bullpen session Tuesday. Barring any problems, he will make his first minor league start Friday night for Class-A Tampa and could be pitching for the Yankees during the last week of May or first few days of June.
Roger Clemens is scheduled to make his first minor league start on Friday.
The seven-time Cy Young Award winner spent 4 1/2 hours at the complex. He was on the field for 65 minutes doing running, agility work and fielding drills.
Clemens did not speak at length with reporters, When departing and reporters asked questions, all Clemens said about the workout was that it was "good."
Clemens played catch with Phil Hughes, the promising rookie right-hander on the 15-day disabled list with a hamstring injury. Clemens also spent 30 minutes standing on a mound discussing pitching mechanics with Hughes.
Dressed in jeans and a yellow shirt, Clemens got out of his vehicle after the workout to sign autographs for about 15 people waiting near the player's parking lot.
It has not been determined whether Clemens will make two or three minor league starts before joining the Yankees' rotation. Clemens, who agreed to a $28,000,022, one-year contract on May 6, worked out last week in Lexington, Ky., where his son plays for a Houston Astros minor league club.
When he rejoined the Astros last year, Clemens agreed to a contract on May 31, made three minor league starts and returned to the majors on June 22.
Notes: Yankees LHP Kei Igawa, sent to the minors on May 7 to correct problems with his delivery, had a 19-pitch bullpen session after working on his mechanics. ... Former major league RHP Pete Walker, who is 38, has been working out at the Yankees' complex.
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Post by jumbo on May 15, 2007 18:53:41 GMT -5
Clemens could be ready for Yanks by May 28 Rocket throws 71 pitches in bullpen session; has minor league start Friday The Associated Press Updated: 4:57 p.m. ET May 15, 2007 TAMPA, Fla. - Roger Clemens could pitch for the New York Yankees as early as May 28 in Toronto. “I think anything is possible,” said Clemens, who’s expected to make the first of two minor league starts Friday. “If I come out of the first two decent, they’ll pull me aside, and we’ll all visit about that for sure. I don’t think it’s out of the question.” Just two starts in the minors would pit the 44-year-old against the Blue Jays on May 28 or 29. The next time through the rotation would have Clemens pitching at AL East-leading Boston on June 2 or 3. On Tuesday, Clemens threw 71 pitches during his first bullpen session at the Yankees’ minor league complex. He’ll likely throw 45-to-60 pitches Friday during his first minor league start for Class-A Tampa. He also will work in the bullpen afterward to get his pitch count up to around 90. “I think I’m right where I need to be to get this under way on Friday,” Clemens said at a Legends Field news conference. “Endurance and conditioning, I think I’m very close. I’ve got to get in a game as quick as possible, and I’ll have a good telltale sign of what happens on Saturday morning.” When he rejoined the Astros last year, Clemens agreed to a contract on May 31, made three minor league starts and returned to the majors on June 22. Clemens, who agreed to a $28,000,022, one-year contract on May 6, worked out last week in Lexington, Ky., where his son plays for a Houston Astros minor league club. “I’m getting closer,” he said. “I want to be able to perform like I’m supposed to. Hold up my end of the deal. That’s the pressure that comes along with it. I have the same question you all do, is my body going to hold up? I can’t answer that. All I can do is do the work and get ready for that.” Clemens threw his split-finger, slider and two-seam and four-seam fastballs Tuesday. “He was on the money,” said Yankees minor leaguer James LaSala, who caught Clemens. “Great stuff. Great command.” Clemens also discussed mechanics with several pitchers, including promising rookie right-hander Phil Hughes, Jeff Karstens and minor leaguer Joba Chamberlain, while working on the mound. “I enjoy teaching,” Clemens said. “I enjoy working with them, talking to them and trying to answer their questions. I give them credit, they’ve asked some really detailed questions.” The seven-time Cy Young Award winner started his workout by jogging through the area around the complex. He also took part in fielding drills during his hour on the field. Clemens said he has no idea if this will be final season. “How can I answer that?” Clemens said with a smile. “I’m doing so great at retirement. I’ve been telling you for what, how many years now? I wish I knew that.” Notes: Clemens said he has talked with Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, who lives in Tampa, but hadn’t seen the Boss in person. ... Clemens said he has not been contacted by representatives of the Mitchell commission, which is investigating steroids use in baseball. “I don’t know anything about that,” Clemens said. ... Hughes, on the 15-day DL with a hamstring injury, has started a running program. He hasn’t reached the point yet to where he can throw off a half-mound. © 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. URL: www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18679503/ |
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Post by jumbo on May 17, 2007 0:31:19 GMT -5
May 17, 2007
Sports of The Times
Awaiting Defining Pitchers
By DAVE ANDERSON
Pressed and spotless, their uniforms hang neatly in the clubhouses at Yankee Stadium and Shea Stadium, but neither pitcher is there. Their lockers are as empty as the slots in their teams’ rotations. And until Roger Clemens and Pedro Martínez each reappear, neither the Yankees nor the Mets will really know how high (or how low) they can go this season.
In the Mets’ success and the Yankees’ struggle approaching their annual intramural inspection beginning tomorrow night at Shea, they continue to hold tryout camps for another starting pitcher. Hardly the ideal situation for two teams expected to be competing in October.
At last count, the Yankees had used 10 different starting pitchers this season and were searching the minors for an 11th. The Mets had used seven different starting pitchers while they wait not only for Martínez, but also for the elegant El Duque, Orlando Hernández, the ??-year-old right-hander, to return from shoulder bursitis, perhaps next weekend against the Marlins in Florida. Needing that many different starters only adds to each team’s desperate need for a reliable starter, whether it be Clemens, Martínez or names yet to surface.
Nine days after his theatrically choreographed return to the Yankees in George Steinbrenner’s box at the Stadium, the 44-year-old Clemens threw 71 pitches, including warm-ups, off a mound Tuesday at the Yankees’ minor league complex in Tampa, Fla. Martínez is also throwing regularly but tenderly, either at the Mets’ base at Port St. Lucie, Fla., or in the Dominican Republic.
But throwing is not pitching to big-league hitters. Throwing is just that, throwing. And pitching to minor league hitters is not pitching to big-league hitters.
Clemens is scheduled to throw 45 to 60 pitches (and 30 more in the bullpen) for Tampa in a Class A minor-league start tomorrow night. After a Class AA start for the Trenton farm team Wednesday, the Yankees and Clemens will make the big decision: the date when he rejoins the rotation, even if it is for only six innings.
If all goes well, Clemens could be wearing his No. 22 uniform in Toronto on May 28, or in Boston on June 1 when the Yankees open a three-game series.
Toronto would be preferable; less news media crush. Although he earned two Cy Young awards with the Blue Jays before joining the Yankees as a free agent for the 1999 season, he is both revered and reviled in Boston, where he was voted the first three of his seven Cy Young plaques. Making his return at Fenway Park would add another dramatic dimension that could result in more harm than good.
•
Whenever he returns, Clemens can’t afford to have forced or hurried himself into an arm or leg injury, nor can the Yankees afford to force or hurry him.
If the Yankees, already dangerously far behind the Red Sox in the American League East, are to climb over maybe as many as five teams to salvage the wild-card berth in the playoffs, they need a healthy Clemens at his best (at least at his 44-year-old best) not only over the last four months of the season, but also in October if they’re going to have any chance of winning the World Series.
Two of the Yankees’ original five starters have vanished — Carl Pavano to possible elbow surgery, Kei Igawa to the minors. Their ace right-hander of the future, Phil Hughes, is recovering from a pulled hamstring after pitching a no-hitter into the seventh inning in his debut. Jeff Karstens sustained a broken leg. Chase Wright was chased back to the minors by four consecutive home runs.
No wonder the Yankees have struggled to get to .500 as they await Clemens’s return. Martínez, meanwhile, isn’t expected to rejoin the Mets until sometime after the All-Star Game on July 14, if then.
At 35, Martínez is a decade younger than Clemens, but he’s much more fragile. During his shaky 9-8 record with a 4.48 earned run average last season, he kept breaking down — a right-hip inflammation in midseason, a right calf strain in September, then a left calf tear late in the season and a rotator-cuff tear that demanded surgery and benched him throughout the Mets’ playoff run.
When healthy, Martínez has been one of baseball’s best pitchers; his .691 winning percentage (206-92) is the highest in history among pitchers with at least 200 decisions. But his next injury might be one pitch away.
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Even without Martínez, the Mets appear capable of battling the Braves, their longtime nemesis, for first place in the National League East, but even as the wild card, they would need Martínez at his best in the postseason. His absence last year kept them from getting past the Cardinals in the N.L. Championship Series and possibly winning the World Series.
How well the Mets and the Yankees do will depend on how well Roger Clemens and Pedro Martínez fill those empty lockers.
Copyright 2007 The New York Times Company
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Post by jumbo on May 22, 2007 11:33:02 GMT -5
JOE AWAITS CLEMENS’ GREEN LIGHT
By GEORGE KING
May 22, 2007 -- Joe Torre said it's up to Roger Clemens to decide if tomorrow night's start for Trenton (Double-A) is his last in the minors.
"It will be his last if he says it is," Torre said of Clemens, who will be making his second minor-league outing since signing with the Yankees.
Clemens and pitching guru Billy Connors will use John Madden's custom bus to make the trip from New York to Trenton.
Barring injury, the 44-year-old Clemens will start for the Yankees in Toronto next week. If they keep him on four days' rest, that would be Monday. But Andy Pettitte starts against the Red Sox tomorrow night and Monday would be his day.
It's possible the Yanks could use Clemens Tuesday against the Blue Jays. If they wait for Wednesday, Clemens wouldn't be available to face the Red Sox in Fenway Park.
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Jorge Posada went 0-for-3 with a walk and had a career-high 15-game hitting streak stopped last night. It was the longest streak by a Yankee catcher since Bob Guren hit in 15 straight games in 1989.
Phil Hughes threw 25 pitches off a half-mound, jogged and went through agility drills yesterday in Tampa. It was the first throwing off a mound for Hughes since injuring a hamstring May 1 in Texas.
Kei Igawa threw 56 pitches in a bullpen two days after working four innings of a Single-A game.
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Still no sighting of Carl "American Idle" Pavano in the Yankee clubhouse. GM Brian Cashman said the club would have "something early in the week" concerning Pavano's future, which will certainly include Tommy John surgery on the right elbow.
The team is waiting on one of three doctor reports before meeting with Pavano. That report is expected today.
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Torre kept Bobby Abreu in the sixth hole last night, 24 hours after saying he didn't know if he would return Abreu to his customary third spot in the order, where Hideki Matsui batted for the third straight game.
Abreu went 1-for-3, walked and scored a run.
NEW YORK POST is a registered trademark of NYP Holdings, Inc.
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Post by jumbo on May 24, 2007 10:27:23 GMT -5
Clemens doesn't look ready, but Yanks need him
Thursday, May 24, 2007
So if the $18-million franchise savior can't mow down a team with a silly nickname and minor-league talent like the Portland Sea Dogs, what's he going to do against, say, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays?
Okay, bad example.
Still, this was not an encouraging night for a Yankees team that needs Roger Clemens circa 2003, not the Clemens that struggled with his control, walked four batters and hit another, and sulked off the mound at Waterfront Stadium with the bases loaded after 5 1/3 mediocre innings.
"It's one step in the right direction, a little bit further down the road," Clemens said when his second tune-up was finished. And while the Yankees have yet to make a decision on where he'll pitch next, all signs point to him starting early next week in Toronto.
Is he ready? Better question: At this point, does it matter? The Yankees did not get Clemens to pitch mop-up games in August. They need him now -- they needed him last month, actually -- if they have any chance at chiseling at the Red Sox's 9 1/2-game AL East lead.
That he started the sixth inning is all you need to know about his intentions. He had thrown 85 pitches through five innings and received an ovation when he walked off the mound to end the fifth, but Clemens was not done. He probably should have been.
He gave up two singles to start the sixth, then hit a batter and, with one out and a full count, walked the No. 9 hitter to bring in the tying run. He threw Iggy Suarez, who is hovering around the Mendoza line, a breaking ball when the ballpark was waiting to see the high heat.
"If it was up to me, I would have tried to work through that inning," Clemens said. Instead, he said the Yankees brass wanted him to stop at 100 pitches. After needing 48 pitches just to get through the first two innings, it was surprising to see him still out there at all.
The way Clemens started this one, the already exhausted Yankees relievers may have received a text message from the Trenton bullpen.
"OMG! Get the ice ready!"
This was an event for the folks here, and waaaay-beyond-capacity crowd of 9,134 came to see the seven-time Cy Young winner. He arrived in a luxury bus fitted with leather reclining chairs, a kitchenette with stainless-steel appliances and a catered spread, plus a full-sized bed in the back for catnaps.
No, when the old-timers opined about those long hours spent on buses in the minors, this is probably not what they had in mind.
"They didn't even do this for Jeter!" is how 12-year-old Josh Weil, armed with a baseball and a Sharpie, summed up the scene. When it was time for Clemens to pitch, a black Chevy Suburban -- nearly as big as the bus itself -- drove him the 500 yards from the parking lot to the stadium.
The Thunder players, unlike Kyle Farnsworth, didn't get worked up about the special treatment. They knew it was coming. But they probably thought the guy getting the VIP perks was a special player.
Clemens looked ordinary from the start. His first pitch was in the dirt. His second pitch was high and outside. "Come on, throw strikes!" one fan actually yelled, as if this were also a tune-up for the Bronx fans, too.
He needed 30 pitches to get through the first inning, walking three and uncorking a wild pitch. He was high and inside, low and in the dirt, and the Sea Dogs -- as if under instructions from their parent club, the Red Sox, to make Clemens work -- kept taking and taking.
He threw 102 pitches, 64 for strikes, over 5 1/3 innings. He struck out five but allowed four walks and hit a batter. He gave up six hits -- including a triple and three doubles -- and three earned runs. Guys like Scott Youngbauer and Jed Lowrie took their cuts and hit him hard, but still, Clemens was happy.
"I did everything I wanted to do with the baseball, pretty much," Clemens said, who blamed the differences between the minor-league ball and the one used in the majors for his control issues. When asked if that meant he was ready to put on his cape and save the Yankees, he said, "I'll keep that in-house."
He probably could use another tune-up start, maybe in Triple-A in Scranton, Pa., but nobody will have the patience for that. Not Clemens, who wants the clock on his pro-rated contract to start ticking, nor the Yankees, who want the time bomb that is this season to stop ticking.
Clemens said he enjoyed getting to "see some neat towns" like Trenton, but now he needs to point that luxury bus toward the Bronx. Ready or not, the Yankees need him ASAP. Like, last month.
© 2007 The Star Ledger
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Post by philinla on May 24, 2007 11:46:48 GMT -5
Whoever wrote that article for the Star Ledger doesn't understand what rehab starts are for.
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Post by jumbo on May 25, 2007 0:05:34 GMT -5
Delayed launch: Rocket may put off N.Y. return Another minor league start likely for Clemens after Wednesday’s struggles The Associated Press Updated: 10:21 p.m. ET May 24, 2007 NEW YORK - Roger Clemens probably will make another minor league start before rejoining the New York Yankees. Clemens struggled a bit Wednesday night, allowing three runs and six hits in 5 1-3 innings for Double-A Trenton with four walks, five strikeouts, a hit batter and a wild pitch. While a final decision won’t be made until after a bullpen session Friday, there’s a good chance the 44-year-old right-hander will start Monday at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre against Toledo, several Yankees officials said Thursday. That would put the seven-time Cy Young Award winner on track to make his first start for the Yankees at Fenway Park on June 2 or 3 against the Boston Red Sox, his original team. Clemens agreed to a $28,000,022, one-year contract on May 6 and made his first minor league start on May 18, giving up one run and in four innings for Class A Tampa. He threw 58 pitches in his first start and 102 in his second. www.msnbc.msn.com/id/188534 |
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Post by jumbo on May 25, 2007 12:54:31 GMT -5
Rocket's bullpen work to decide start
Posted: Friday May 25, 2007 06:53AM ET
Roger Clemens will work a bullpen session today, then the decision will be announced whether he will join the Yankees or make another stop on his Baseball America tour.--New York Post
Edit:The latest buzz is that RC will pitch the first game in Chicago vs the White Sox on June 4th.
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