Posts Tagged ‘Mark McGwire’

Roger Clemens Lied on Final Strike: No Sympathy Whatsoever

August 20th, 2010

What exactly was Roger Clemens thinking when he testified and told a fib to Congress in Capital Hill? As much as we want to believe that the Steroid Era has suddenly vanished, we’ll never forget all his rehearsed and inglorious lies, inexplicably and simply covering the truth and denied confessing of his wrongdoings.

With some serious explaining, now is the time Mr. Clemens may want to consider telling the truth and nothing but the truth, to avoid further dishonesty and public humiliation. Amid the most embarrassing twist, all we want is the truth, but apparently the feds and their grand jury uncovered the specifics. There’s no sympathy for the seven-time Cy Young winner who fabricated his accomplished career and, still to this day, lives a lie ever since juicing his level of performance for an advantage in a competitive sport.

What is exactly mind-blogging is that an infamous crisis is getting worse, epically for the endless dirtiness it displays, sabotaging the beauty of the game. The despicable crime labels Clemens as a fraud, a lying dumb-ass apathetic by a damaged legacy that smeared his credibility long before honesty surfaced. His steroid scandal, which ruptured the irreparable image of Clemens, who is perceived as a hopeless, unworthy right-hander, poses as a disgrace in a sport deteriorating and falling into oblivion.

It was 2½ years ago when Clemens declined in a congressional hearing as a national audience watched it nationwide on television, that he ever used performance-enhancing drugs. Huh! In the end, you were hoodwinked, cheated and fooled. How does it feel to be lied to? How does it feel to be betrayed? Trust me, I know how it feels.  

And to believe that Clemens never used an unlawful substance, or even advocating it’s acceptable to tatter the integrity of the sport in general is foolishness. It turns out that he’s the equivalent of my ex-girlfriend, a pseudo and betrayer for erroneously committing fraud on a game he truly relished and mastered before revelations manifested clear evidence of drug usage.

At this point, the man formerly known as the Rocket is unsurprisingly the Big Fat Liar, perhaps the biggest liar sports may have ever witnessed in this decade, if ever. If Clemens committed such a sickened crime, instead of being deceptive and secretive, he’d release much tension and guilt by unleashing the truth. That’d seem very rational to avoid further nonsense and clear his name of guilt. But this happens when someone is self-indulgent, arrogant or ignorant, subsequently for getting caught and accused furtive sins.

Any notion that baseball was tainted years ago, Clemens was considerably one of the best pitchers at the time, of course, taking the mound as a sham and failing to be purist or expose his artistic competitiveness without injecting himself with contaminated juice. I’ve never been so befuddled and disappointed. I’ve never felt so cheated and betrayed in my life, trusting in Clemens for pitching fiercely and performing with diligence in effortless outings.

What? He relied on juice all along. What appeared real was unreal. What seemed legit was dirty. No wonder the ball was usually covered with nasty dirt nearly following every pitch. He tried to hide the truth, a mistaken idea by Clemens, sadly adding horror and anxiety on Thursday indicted on six counts for lying under oath. All he simply had to tell the world is that he was guilty and wrongly opted to be a drug dealer, rather than a spotless pitcher. Now that he’s naïve and still acknowledged he never pumped his body with steroids or HGH, troubles are stemming from allegedly falsifying.

Clemens has taken a rapid fall from grace, and he’s a fallen star quicker than Tiger Woods or LeBron James, losing his claim to all-time greatness among elite pitchers. Didn’t he realize it’s risky and dumb to lie under oath? Didn’t he know that is perjury? Is he really that offended with the accusations and recent charges? Then, state the facts, Roger. No false statements, but the truth. It’s time he finally succumbs to reality, but ever since the Mitchell Report revealed Clemens’ name, he hasn’t spoke in clarity or helped his own cause for spinning the story.

According to the Big Fat Liar, he “Misremembers” ever been injected with the substances. Ummm! If he had sense and pride, Clemens in all likelihood wouldn’t be facing prison time, but at worse, would have only been tainted and portrayed as a fraud. For years, ultimately, we worshipped his longevity, talent and work ethic, blinded by the possibilities of cheating and the likelihood of lying. He was famously the best pitcher admired in a corrupted age of baseball, amid the rejuvenation of the game during the baseball-saving season, the summer of ’98 when the feats and incredible milestones of Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire were relevant.

For years, sadly, we believed in Clemens until he disappointed us, lied to us and tricked us. And to make matters worst, he never had the courage or audacity to admit to immorality. Let’s face it the performance-enhancing drugs helped him infamously win two World Series championships and 354 games. Common sense tells us that he took advantage of enhancing his game with the exception of drugs, obviously when his numbers suddenly ascended later in his career.

Ever seen a pitcher’s numbers improve late in his career? Not unless it was Clemens. More noticeably, his ERA skyrocketed greatly and he began pitching efficiently, having solid control of his command and velocity. And years later, he tried to prove his innocence and purity, which degenerated when baseball released the Mitchell Report. In the meantime, his legacy is smeared because of ignorance, and even his freedom is endangered because of lying.          

“Let me be clear. I have never taken steroids or HGH.”

Not even a fool believes Clemens.

In 23 major-league seasons, he was deemed as arguably the greatest power pitcher the game has ever seen, but in recent years has plunged and he likely faces 15 to 21 months in prison. This is no surprise, after all, we are living in the Steroid Era, a time when the horrid crisis is badly ruining and bruising the game, such as Barry Bonds, the arrogant slugger who ostensibly lied under oath as well. If there’s one player loathed more in this country for wrongly surpassing Hank Aaron’s home run record on a night he captured the tainted milestone, it’s a moody and overbearing Bonds.

As for Clemens, the grand jury is claiming that he lied 15 times under oath. If so, then he may jeopardize his lifestyle and may have to serve harsh time, based on the power of law enforcers. Sure, he has every right to claim his innocence, but the evidence revealed the explanation of a dubious situation.

In the aftermath of the release of the Mitchell Report, he’s still not confessing or apologizing for deceiving, not only the game, but congressional investigators and Congress. All along, I believed his former training Brain McNamee, who stated in the report that he injected Clemens on a cycle period with steroids and HGH between 1998 and 2001. Nevertheless, on Twitter, he’s refusing to unleash what really transpired in that time span. So apparently, he hasn’t learned or simply doesn’t care.

“I never took HGH or Steroids. And I did not lie to Congress,” Clemens wrote. “I look forward to challenging the Governments accusations, and hope people will keep an open mind until trail. I appreciate all the support I have been getting. I am happy to finally have my day in court.”

Why, so he can lie repeatedly? What support is he getting? Who is endorsing the Big Fat Liar? Oh, his attorney Rusty Harden.

“The problem is nobody ever talks about what he should have done if he didn’t do it,” Harden said. “And he didn’t do it and he’s adamant about that and always has been. Today is just another continuing part of that saga…Roger is looking forward to his day in court. He is happy this has finally happened. We have known for some time this was going to happen. We’ll let everything get taken care of in court.”

Between the PEDs headlines and extramarital affairs, including an alleged affair with country signer Mindy McCready, his clean image is pathetically damaged and his credibility is lost. As of recently, he’s delusional and continues to deny all reports or any negative news that unveils. If his name was mentioned 82 times in the Mitchell Report, what makes us think he’s not guilty, what makes us think he never endangered his image or chances of being enshrined into the Hall of Fame for falsification and lagging on issuing a statement when the accusations were publicized?

If he tried to publicly spin the story and former friend Andy Pettitte’s testimony, what makes us think he’s telling the truth? Come on, use common sense. In front of your eyes, he tricked the game of baseball and all populace, after vowing to be a power pitcher legitimately. When he appears in court, Clemens may wear his immaculate face again and try persuading the court system that he’s not guilty.

“The indictment of Roger Clemens comes as no surprise to me,” said Victor Conte, founder of BALCO. “In my opinion, the case against Clemens is far stronger than the case against Barry Bonds. Brain McNamee is an eyewitness who will testify against Clemens and there appears to be strong physical evidence against him as well. I believe Roger Clemens is in a lot of trouble.”

Yes, he is in much trouble.

He’s looking at prison time. I guess that means NO Cooperstown.

The Rocket has exploded, eternally.

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Roger Clemens: He’s Not Guilty Yet

August 20th, 2010

Geraldo Rivera appeared on the O'Reilly Show yesterday comparing Roger Clemens attorney with the attorney for Mark McGwire. Geraldo's position was that Rusty Hardin, Clemens' attorney, should be disbarred for allowing his client to testify. He said that Hardin is responsible for Clemens' federal indictment yesterday for allegedly lying to Congress.

Geraldo's position, like so many others including that of Major League Baseball, is that Clemens lied because he used steroids while winning some or all of his record-breaking seven Cy Young Awards as one of baseball's two best pitchers.

The period in question was when his trainer Brian McNamee alleged he was injecting Clemens with steroids between 1998 and 2001, when Clemens won two of his seven Cy Young Awards.

Clemens was "convicted" on steroid charges by George Mitchell, former Senate Majority Leader, who was hired by Major League Baseball to do a report on steroid use in baseball. 

Clemens was singled out by name 82 times in the 409-page report, compiled by former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell. Much of the information on Clemens came from his former trainer, Brian McNamee, once the Yankees' strength and conditioning coach.

The use of largely one witness against Clemens to name him so many times in a report could leave the impression that Clemens is banking on proving McNamee is lying. And the "conviction" was done with little or no defense other than Clemens' adamant denials of the charges of his alleged steroid use.

Are Geraldo, Mitchell, and MLB right even regarding Clemens' steriod use? Is Geraldo right regarding the disbarring of Clemens' attorney Rusty Hardin?

The first is yet to be decided. Famous people are often proved right in jury trials. Some say that they have the advantage because of their fame. The best example of this preference could be OJ Simpson. Yet, even in OJ's case, the glove incident was tantamount to the win by the defense team he hired.

If this proves to end up being Clemens against McNamee, the defense could hold more of the cards than we know. Only a trial seems inevitable here. Not the outcome. The outcomes of jury trials are often a toss-up depending on what the two sides, the prosecution and defense, are able to get before the jury and the jury's impression of the witnesses.

As far as the claim that Rusty Hardin should be disbarred, Geraldo is completely wrong.

His claim was that Clemens should have been handled in the same way as Mark McGuire. This means that he has both convicted Clemens before trial, wants the public to believe that attorneys have control of clients, and claims that the failure of Hardin to get his client to act in a certain way is a basis for disbarment. As an attorney himself, he knows full well that this is far from the truth.

Clemens is yet to be convicted. For this alone, despite the evidence largely from McNamee whose testimony is likely impeachable (that is can be attacked as wrong) in various ways, Geraldo is subject to some form of opprobrium because he knows full well that a trial can result in Clemens' vindication.

But there are two more, far more grievous aspects of Geraldo's statements.

The claim that Hardin should be able to control his client is complete nonsense. Clemens dictates the grounds of his defense and what he does. As the client, he has largely control over what is done. And he has complete control over what he chooses to do. Thus, despite legal advice one way or the other, Clemens controlled whether he appeared before Congress to testify. Geraldo's claim that he did not is completely wrong.

Worse still is the claim of the need to disbar an attorney. As with any other attorney, Geraldo is obligated to ensure that he does not mislead the public. Especially, making claims like this against another attorney. There is absolutely no factual basis for his contention that disbarrment is appropriate.

Geraldo Rivera remains a member of the New York Bar. Thus, he could be disciplined if he broke any of the rules of that Bar when he made his intemperate statements. And one of the cardinal requirements is being accurate and truthful. It appears his remarks, as I remember them, missed that mark by a very long shot.

In the end, Clemens has the right as does anyone in the United States to vindicate his name in court. We should be far less ready to judge him than Geraldo Rivera. And if he clears his name, many will need to apologize to him.

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Roger Clemens’ Indictment: Did He Lie To Congress?

August 20th, 2010

When Roger Clemens stepped in front of a House committee on Capitol Hill in 2008 and said, “Let me be clear, I have never taken steroids or HGH,” he set himself up for a battle bigger than any he faced during his famed baseball career.

After being mentioned in the Mitchell Report, Clemens voluntarily spoke in front of Tom Davis, the top Republican on the House panel, and Henry Waxman, the committee’s chairman at the time, and potentially dug his own grave.

Davis and Waxman told Clemens before he spoke, “Whatever you do, don’t lie.” Whether there is truth in the subsequent response from Clemens is now anybody’s guess.

It’s a case that is now under investigation, as a federal grand jury indicted Clemens on Thursday for allegedly lying under oath. The jury indicted Clemens on six counts of obstructing a congressional inquiry.

The grand jury believes that Clemens made 15 dishonest statements under oath, including denying that he ever used steroids or human growth hormone.

 

“Self-Inflicted Wound”

The most shocking, or idiotic, part about all of this is that, if Clemens indeed lied to Congress, he did it voluntarily.

Clemens was not under subpoena when he raised his right hand and shunned the Fifth Amendment.

Clemens wanted to go to court in order to clear his name, as if he thought that would wipe his reputation clean.

He wanted to be accepted as a great pitcher, not as a guy who spent 13 seasons with the Boston Red Sox—more than a full career for most pitchers—and then went to the Toronto Blue Jays and mysteriously proceeded to put up the best numbers of his career and win back-to-back Cy Young awards in the process.

Davis and Waxman both believe that Clemens lied to them during his hearing. Given the fact that Clemens could have quietly walked away from it all and into a life without professional baseball, Davis called Clemens’ testimony a “self-inflicted wound.”

It’s a wound that could cut deeper than any positive steroid test ever could. Clemens could face up to 30 years in prison if convicted.

An indictment is far from a conviction, however, and Clemens would never face the max penalty if found guilty. Legal analysts say Clemens would probably face an imprisonment of six to 18 months.

A conclusion will not come for a few years if Barry Bonds’ indictment is any indication of the timetable for these proceedings. A grand jury indicted Bonds in 2007, and his court date isn’t scheduled until March.

But Clemens’ court date means little at this point, as the damage has been done.

He will never be seen as innocent in the eyes of baseball fans, regardless of what a grand jury finds. If nothing conclusive has been found since 2008, why is there any reason to believe that the dirt will come up now?

It’s Clemens’ word versus Brian McNamee’s, his estranged trainer and a former strength and conditioning coach of the New York Yankees, and neither side is going to fold.

McNamee said to a jury during his testimony, among other things, that he injected Clemens with steroids. McNamee gave the grand jury eight-year-old needles that he said he used on Clemens.

McNamee also said that he injected Clemens’ wife with HGH before she appeared in a Sports Illustrated photo shoot.

Clemens has continually denied all claims, and therefore the saga continues. The grand jury will have to wade through the alibis, and the outcome remains uncertain.

 

What about the Hall of Fame?

One outcome that is no longer uncertain is that of Clemens’ Hall of Fame candidacy.

The only players who fans and media members despise more than steroid users are those who lie about being steroid users.

Mark McGwire ended up being a phony on the field, but he chose not to speak about his steroid use under oath, before admitting all of it prior to this season as he prepared to become the hitting coach for the St. Louis Cardinals.

If McGwire can’t obtain the 75 percent of votes required for induction into the Hall of Fame, then there’s no way Clemens will.

Some say Clemens, and other alleged steroid users who haven’t admitted their use, should be inducted if his career merits such an honor. Unfortunately, athletes are not innocent until proven guilty. Perception and reputation are oftentimes far more important than the truth.

“In my opinion he’s a Hall of Famer, period,” Lance Berkman, a former teammate of Clemens, said. “Whatever you want to say about the guy, he belongs in the Hall of Fame. Legacy-wise, I mean 200 years from now, who cares?”

Berkman makes a valid point, but this isn’t about Clemens’ legacy. His legacy has already been trashed, and there’s no going back on that.

Because Clemens approaches all of this with such arrogance, he doesn’t have many, if any, fans in his corner. America has long made up its mind about Roger Clemens, and this investigation won’t change that.

Clemens could be found innocent by the grand jury, and it probably wouldn’t matter. Would anybody believe he never took steroids or HGH, not even once, if nothing came of this investigation? Doubt it.

Clemens can continue to post denials on Twitter and his attorney, Rusty Hardin, can continue to tell people, “how happy Roger is” that he’s finally “getting his day in court.”

Spare us.

Federal investigators need some more time to determine whether or not Clemens lied under oath.

Innocent or guilty, the rest of the country has already reached a conclusion on Clemens.

 

Follow Teddy Mitrosilis on Twitter. You can reach him at tm4000@yahoo.com.

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Roger Clemens: Hall of Fame of Stubbornness

August 19th, 2010

Given the number of superstars who used performance-enhancing drugs to bolster their statistics, you can almost chalk up this era as one of the many situations that cause people to make wrong choices.

People abuse alcohol, people, commit crimes, cheat on their spouses, and cheat to improve performance.

Our American society has to be one of the most forgiving group of people when it comes to individuals that make mistakes. But it has been proven time and time again, if people screw up, and then act mightier and holier than the United States of Forgiving Americans, your credibility and popularity will be ruined.

Forget all of the other problems people have, let's simply focus on the steroid era.  There are four different categories that quickly come to mind on how people have handled their situation when faced with adversity. And there is only ONE of these categories that is a mistake—to lie and deny. 

Who advises these wealthy icons that ride off into the sunset with only a minor dent to their image?

Let me outline these different approaches with specific examples of the status of some of these guilty ballplayers.

The one category I am not including is the player who comes out that they have used without being caught. That is not in the nature of the overpaid professional athletes. That is why they are sneaking around and hiding their dark, seedy actions in the first place.

Jose Canseco might be the only guy who might fall into this category, but he is an absolute freak with very confusing motives.

 

Category I- Caught and Fully Admit your Mistake

Examples: Andy Pettite, Jason Giambi, Chuck Knobloch, and many others

The majority of players caught fall in to this category. Players that come clean when caught are simply given a second chance. Especially those that took HGH early on when it technically wasn't illegal and there seemed to be a lot of confusion about what was allowed and not allowed.

But the more important point here is that these players were faced with a decision when caught. Either their conscience or their advisers quickly steered them in the right direction. They are just a blip in what we all know is a tainted era and therefore their legacies will only be tarnished by the overall view of this dark period.

 

Category II- Caught and Partially Admit Your Mistake or Play Dumb

Examples: Alex Rodriguez, Mark McGwire (finally), Gary Sheffield, Sammy Sosa, and many others

This is a smaller group and includes some of the biggest names ever to ever play the game. It also includes several non-American players who tend to get away with the Sammy "play dumb" Sosa routine.

These guys will leave the game with mixed legacies because they still have an edge of stubbornness and feel better about living with themselves because they didn't fully disclose their misdeeds.

This is even a greater example of our forgiving society—could you follow Rodriguez' story? Did McGwire really come clean?  Yet these guys will have their day in Cooperstown.

 

Category III- Deny 'Til Death

Examples: Roger Clemens, Barry Bonds, Rafael Palmeiro

Let's put Rafael "look Congress in the eye and bold faced lie" Palmeiro aside for a moment.

Clemens and Bonds had HOF careers prior to shooting up. You could make a case that they were top 10 in the history of this great sport, they have ridiculous 'coin', and they could name their job in baseball for the rest of their lives.

But the single most important thing in their lives when they go to bed every night is that they are never caught. So is this stubbornness or stupidity? In every American's mind, they are caught. Yet, they continue to live their lives as though they are getting away with something.

Wait—breaking news! Clemens just tweeted that he never took performance-enhancing drugs and didn't lie to Congress. Can you believe this guy? Even though thousands of people read that tweet, he didn't change one single person's mind. This is really sad.

Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens are two of the most arrogant males that have walked this planet. They don't deserve to be called men.

They have shamed their families, they have toyed with their fans, and they continue to remain in the news and remind us of this era of cheats. I don't hear much more about Tejada, Rodriguez, Cust, Giambi, and Guillen while they are still playing.

And let's not forget about Big(ger) Mac. This guy was in the same category as Clemens and Bonds. So he is the most extreme case of our forgiveness. You can be a high and mighty jerk, and still come out looking okay; not great, but okay.

By the way, can you believe Rusty Hardin makes money for advising Clemens?

Roger, keep on tweeting buddy—I hope you are this persuasive in front of the Federal Grand Jury.

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Brad Lidge, Philadelphia Phillies, Stars In: The Return of the Slider

August 17th, 2010

Last Thursday night, in the midst of the Philadelphia Phillies' comeback against Los Angeles Dodgers reliever Jonathan Broxton, Dodger manager Joe Torre came to the mound to speak with his closer.

Television cameras picked up what Torre was mouthing to Broxton. Simply put, Torre asked, "Do you trust your stuff?"

Minutes later, meltdown completed and Phillies victory in the bag, Broxton sulked from the mound. The Dodgers had just lost a seven run lead with two innings to play.

Unfortunately, it's a feeling that fans of many teams go through during a season. When the man known as the "closer" doesn't close, it's ugly.

It's a feeling many Phillies fans have experienced over the past two seasons with Brad Lidge.

Often times, there have probably been people yelling at their own television sets to Lidge, screaming, along with a few obscenities mixed in, "Do you trust your stuff?"

For Lidge, 2009 was an unmitigated disaster. Mark McGwire would be proud to know we won't be talking about the past in this article.

This is about the present, and the final month and a half of the 2010 baseball season.

While the Phillies will likely get Chase Utley and Ryan Howard back in the lineup this week, and while quality starting pitching is paramount, many teams only go as far as their bullpen allows. The Phillies experienced that first hand in 2008 when Lidge delivered perfection, 48 saves in 48 opportunities including the postseason.

Since then, things for Lidge have not gone as smoothly. As recently as two weeks ago, plenty questioned Phillies manager Charlie Manuel's decision to continue trotting Lidge out there in save situations.

On July 31, Lidge allowed a three-run walk off home run to Ryan Zimmerman as the Nationals stole a 7-5 victory from the Phillies. Suffice to say, that sinking Groundhog Day feeling was there again.

These days, with all the advancements in baseball statistics and data tracking, few things are more impressive than the PitchFX tool available on numerous websites. A few clicks here and there and you've got yourself a bunch of data about what a pitcher threw, where he threw it, what kind of break the pitch had, and so on.

A look at the chart from that fateful night in Washington D.C. paints a sad picture for Lidge, pitches scattered every which way around the strike zone. The end result looks like target practice if you gave someone a gun for the first time and then blindfolded them.

That night finished off an ugly July for Lidge, one in which he blew two saves, posted an ERA of 6.00, and walked ten while striking out ten. It also finished off a July in which Lidge threw 89 fastballs and 87 sliders. 

Everyone knows the slider is Lidge's best pitch. When Lidge is on, it's usually because his slider is on.

August has been a different story for Lidge.

Thus far, in his seven August appearances, Lidge has thrown the slider 55 times and the fastball 27 times, an astounding 67.1 percent of his deliveries resulting in his nasty breaking ball.

In his August 11 appearance against the Dodgers, which looked like Lidge's best outing of the year, he threw eleven pitches. Nine of them were sliders. The end result was an easy-as-pie 9th inning and Lidge's 15th save of the season. He has since added one more.

In August alone, Lidge has struck out seven and walked none, racking up six saves.

Does Lidge's performance hinge on the success of the slider?

Last year, Lidge's worst season of his career, he threw the fastball just over 50 percent of the time. In 2008's perfect season, it was just 43.4 percent of the time. This year, he has thrown the fastball 41.6 percent of the time, which would be the lowest mark of his career if it holds through the end of the year. 

As Lidge gets older, he must also become wiser. He does not have the same velocity he used to have on his fastball. Indeed, the numbers show he has averaged 92.2 MPH on his fastball this season, down from an average of 95.4 MPH just three seasons ago.

Through natural wear and tear, a few nicks here and there, and age, he just can't get the fastball to the same velocity as he used to.

However, the slider is Lidge's great equalizer. He is still an above-average strikeout pitcher, posting an 11.2 K/9 rate this season. Control has been a problem for Lidge. Maybe it was all in the over-use of the fastball which he had trouble locating. 

Now, as the pennant race heats up, the Phillies must hope that Lidge can deliver down the stretch.

It's not 2008.

He won't be perfect this year.

However, a large part of the Phillies' success in September (and hopefully October) hinges on their closer.

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