Roger Clemens isn’t the same pitcher he was the first time he put on pinstripes, but he did pretty good today, and so did his teammates:
Roger Clemens is a historic baseball figure and Yankee Stadium is a historic baseball park. But their active days are dwindling. After Clemens was the winning pitcher in a 9-3 victory against Pittsburgh in his return to the Yankees yesterday, he sighed deeply and spoke about the past, the present and the near future.
?I?ve got to take a little deep breath now,? Clemens said. ?I understand the excitement that?s there and the expectations that are there, and there?s a lot of both. As an athlete, I have the opportunity to perform in this setting. This stadium?s not going to be around much longer. It sure is a joy.?
He was a 44-year-old pitcher performing in an 84-year-old stadium that is to close after next season and be replaced by a new one next door. Clemens?s 24-year career has taken a circuitous route that has returned him to a place where he was a star from 1999 through 2003.
His two youngest sons ? Kacy, 12, and Kody, 11 ? sat beside him as he discussed a six-inning outing that gave him a 1-0 record this season and a 349-178 career mark. The best, Clemens said, is yet to come.
?Each start I go through now, I expect to get stronger,? said Clemens, who gave up three runs, struck out seven and walked two while throwing 108 pitches, 69 for strikes. His best fastballs were in the range of 91 miles an hour. He mixed in splitters, sliders and an occasional curve.
Clemens said he listened to the cheering and chanting of the fans. ?I was feeling everybody?s energy,? he said. ?Good energy here, as expected. I?m going to savor this moment. Bottom line, I feel blessed.?
I will admit that when the Yankees first signed Clemens about five years ago, I was not entirely pleased. After all, he’d pitched for the hated Red Sox. But, given how he performed while in pinstripes, it seemed like the Babe Ruth Curse had returned for awhile.
Times have changed, Roger Clemens isn’t the same pitcher he was five years ago, and the Yankees are still far behind Boston in the pennant race, but it’s also beginning to feel like the momentum has changed.
Prediction time………
The Yankees will be within five games or less of the Red Sox by the All-Star Break.
