The Rocket Still Rules

By Lou Parrotta

Last October, former New York Yankees superstar Roger Clemens pitched what appeared to be his last game in the Major Leagues. It was Game 4 of the World Series that pitted the powerful Yankees against the upstart and very young Florida Marlins. In the twelve-inning affair, the aging hurler threw seven strong innings, scattering eight hits and yielding three runs. The Yankees hitters would score the same number of runs, and then in the bottom of the twelfth, would lose the game when Alex Gonzalez hit a walk-off home run off of the on-his-way-out-of-New-York-City Jeff Weaver. When Clemens departed from the mound at the start of the eighth inning, the entire crowd in Miami, including the Marlins' players and coaching staff, stood and applauded what they thought would be the last time they would see such greatness on the mound. The most fitting example of how terrific of a pitcher Clemens is, Marlins' manager, long-time baseball man Jack McKeon, tipped his cap to the shoe-in Hall of Famer. 

Clemens went on to enjoy a relatively short retirement; four months. When his best friend Andy Pettitte left the Big Apple to go home to Texas and signed with the Houston Astros, Clemens got the urge to pitch again. After a tremendous courting by the Astros and Pettitte, Clemens decided to un-retire and sign a one-year, $5 million contract with the Astros. Clemens was back in the game that he loved. 

Everyone thought that he was getting too old to be effective on the mound. They also thought he had done everything he could have done on the field. He was, after all, 40 years old. He had already won 310 games and struck out 4,099 batters (good for third on the all-time list). He had won two World Series rings. He'd won an MVP Award. He'd won 20 games six times and the ERA title 6 times. He'd won the pitcher's triple crown twice. Oh, yeah, and he had already won SIX CY YOUNG AWARDS! What else could he possibly do? More importantly, would he be able to do it again at his age? 

Some of you may remember when former Boston Red Sox General Manager Dan Duquette thought Clemens was washed up after the 1996 season. How wrong he was, as Clemens went on to win three of those six Cy Young Awards after his unceremonious departure from Boston. Clemens is once again proving the critics wrong. To this point in the season, Clemens has gone on to win 7 in a row (it would have been 8 had the Houston relievers not blown the game), and he has moved up to number two on the all-time strikeout list (only Nolan Ryan is ahead of him). He is on pace to have one of his best seasons ever. I am glad he's still going. He is literally a once-in-a-generation type of pitcher that everyone should sit down and watch just once. You will most certainly be dazzled by his gifts. Keep rising Rocket! You're the best in the game today!