Was I cheated of my dreams of a big-league career? I don’t know. But I do know there were thousands of guys who were right on the doorstep between 1990 and 2005 and they were cheated because they didn’t use steroids.

And a little further down:

I hear these guys apologize to fans, but at least the fans got to see some cool stuff. They got to see tons of home runs. They got to see (Mark) McGwire and (Sammy) Sosa go at it for the season home run record in 1998. I’d love to see one of these guys apologize to the minor leaguers whose jobs they took with steroids.

I sometimes hear it said that the use of performance-enhancing drugs is a victimless crime. Not everyone has the luxury of sharing this perspective.

Post from: Knuckle Curve

News:

• Transcript: Clemens on ‘60 Minutes’ (Boston Globe)
• Clemens files defamation suit against his ex-trainer (Houston Chronicle)
• Clemens, Pettitte asked to testify before Congress (USA Today)

Commentary:

• McNamee’s attorney: Baloney (Newsday)
• Friends (Baseball Analysts)
• Clemens’ interview was a waste of time (Dallas Morning News)

This should get you up to speed for now. My opinion? The whole thing sucks, as it always has.

Post from: Knuckle Curve

I just downloaded my copy and am replaying the Padres 2006 season. First move? Sign Roger Clemens for 1 year at $11.1 million. Second move? Trade Ryan Klesko and his $10 million contract to the Yankees for Wayne Franklin to clear a little payroll for Clemens.

Ah, I love a good sim. And I really love a good, free sim.

Post from: Knuckle Curve

Meanwhile, we’ve got two AL teams looking for the sweep on Sunday:

• Red Sox at Angels, noon PT — The situation is looking bleak for the team that slaps “Anaheim” at the end of its awkward name. Jered Weaver and Curt Schilling hook up in this one. The Angels desperately need to find a way to contain David Ortiz. Yeah, good luck with that. Also, they need to start hitting. Did I mention it’s looking bleak for them? Yes, I believe I did.
• Indians at Yankees, 3:30 p.m. PT — Jake Westbrook? Roger Clemens? Should be a mismatch, but Clemens finally overstayed his welcome — 6.18 K/9 this year. Still, the guy is one of the top 10 pitchers ever to play the game; if anyone has a little extra in reserve, it’s Clemens. The Indians have hit .329/.453/.614 over the first two games, while New York checks in at .121/.216/.273. It doesn’t get much uglier than that.

Happy watching!

P.S. If your team is out of it, and you just can’t bear to watch someone else bask in the glory, be sure to visit my friends at EMQB and Squib Kick for the latest football news. They’ve got your back.

Post from: Knuckle Curve

American League

• Mariners at Yankees, 10:05 a.m. PT — Good thing folks in Seattle like coffee; this one’s kicking off good and early. The Mariners start the day two games back of New York in the AL wild card race. Felix Hernandez gets the start against a man twice his age, Roger Clemens. Hernandez was born three days before Clemens’ 37th big-league start. Interestingly, their age 21 seasons are kind of similar. Both got hit harder than you might expect for guys with such good stuff and both exhibited surprisingly good control.
• Indians at Twins, 11:10 a.m. PT — C.C. Sabathia vs Johan Santana. The Twins really need to move to the NL Central. Anyway, the last time these two pitchers hooked up, way back on August 29, Sabathia and the Indians came out on top, 4-3.

National League

• Mets at Reds, 10:15 a.m. PT — Pedro Martinez makes his 2007 debut for New York. Aaron Harang, meanwhile, continues to defy the odds by going 14-3 for a team that is 62-75. How does Brandon Phillips have 26 home runs this year? No, it’s not the park; he’s got 13 each at home and away. Weird.
• Padres at Diamondbacks, 1:40 p.m. PT — Two teams in a virtual tie for first place in the NL West with less than a month to go… A pitcher with 343 big-league victories under his belt… A decision made by some genius that this game shouldn’t be televised in San Diego…

One game? San Diego/Arizona if you can swing it; otherwise Cleveland/Minnesota. Happy watching!

Post from: Knuckle Curve

American League

• Angels at Mariners, 1:35 p.m. PT — Division rivals, great pitching matchup (Jered Weaver vs Felix Hernandez). Most days this would be a no-brainer as the game to watch, but there are several good ones today.
• Red Sox at Yankees, 4:05 p.m. PT — Josh Beckett goes up against Roger Clemens. Advice to hitters: look for the fastball. The AL East is slipping away from the Yankees, as they are now 8 games back with 31 remaining. They’re only 2 behind Seattle in the wild card.
• Twins at Indians, 4:05 p.m. PT — Minnesota is hanging in the NL Central race, albeit just barely. They’re 6 1/2 back of Cleveland and 4 back of Detroit. This is a dream pitching matchup: Johan Santana vs C.C. Sabathia. Santana is becoming one of those guys who are trapped by their own success. “Wow, he’s only 14-9 with a 2.97 ERA? What’s wrong with him?” What’s wrong is that he’s better than everyone else, that’s all. Anyway, Sabathia is enjoying a fine season as well. What blows me away about his game is how dramatically he’s improved his control since coming into the league. As a 20-year-old rookie back in 2001, Sabathia walked 4.74 batters per 9 innings. This year he’s at 1.32. Sure, he’s more hittable, but he’s also a lot more efficient (4.10 P/PA in ‘01 compared with 3.65 in ‘07), which allows him to go deeper into games (about 7 innings per start now vs just over 5 1/3 back then).

National League

• Mets at Phillies, 4:05 p.m. PT — Don’t look now, but Philadelphia is only 5 games out of first place in the NL East. Could you find two more different left-handers than Oliver Perez and Jamie Moyer? Well, maybe Cloris Leachman and Paul McCartney, but we’re talking about pitchers here.
• Brewers at Cubs, 5:05 p.m. PT — Another fun matchup: Ben Sheets and Carlos Zambrano. Too bad Milwaukee is 16-26 since the All-Star break. The Brewers are in serious danger of being overtaken by the St. Louis Cardinals for second place in the NL Central. How very disappointing.
• Diamondbacks at Padres, 7:05 p.m. PT — After taking the first two games, San Diego is now in a position to recapture a share of first place with a victory on Wednesday. Slugger Micah Owings gets the start for Arizona, while the Padres counter with the venerable Greg Maddux.

Time for just one? You know my bias, but that Santana/Sabathia matchup has the potential to be brilliant. If I had no other attachments to any of the teams, that is the one I’d watch.

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• Yankees at Tigers, 4:05 p.m. PT — It seems like these two teams are always playing each other. Anyway, Roger Clemens and Andrew Miller makes for an interesting matchup. Aside from the fact that Clemens is twice as old as Miller, it’s also worth noting that lefties are hitting just .140/.241/.180 against the young southpaw. Granted, it’s in all of 60 plate appearances, but yikes.
• Blue Jays at Angels, 7:05 p.m. PT — Roy Halladay and Jered Weaver hook up at Anaheim. If I didn’t have a softball game, I’d make the drive up for this one. Ah, who am I kidding; I’d pass out on the couch while watching Painkiller Jane or some nonsense.
• Padres at Phillies, 4:05 p.m. PT — Greg Maddux? Jamie Moyer? Stop it, please; my hip hurts…
• Dodgers at Mets, 4:10 p.m. PT — Two playoff contenders and a good pitching matchup (Brad Penny vs Oliver Perez). I’ve been watching Perez since he pitched in the California League. If he ever figures out how to get below 3.5 walks per 9, he could be scary good. Nice to see him at least moving in the right direction.
• Pirates at Astros, 5:05 p.m. PT — Just kidding; there’s no reason to watch this.
• Cubs at Diamondbacks, 6:40 p.m. PT — Two pennant contenders send 24-year-olds out to the mound. Arizona right-hander Micah Owings gave up three runs in his last start on August 18 in Atlanta. He also knocked two homers and drove in six. It’s not even 50 plate appearances, but the kid is batting .273/.298/.568. Half of his 12 big-league hits are for extra bases. Maybe if the pitching thing doesn’t work out, he can go the Rick Ankiel route.

There it is. Happy Friday, happy watching!

Post from: Knuckle Curve

• Tigers at Yankees, 12:55 p.m. PT — Two teams fighting for a playoff berth, Roger Clemens pitching… Clemens’ career ERA by team: Tor, 2.33; Hou, 2.40; Bos, 3.06; NYA, 3.99.
• Angels at Red Sox, 4:05 p.m. PT — Same as above, but with Curt Schilling instead of Clemens.
• Cardinals at Cubs, 12:55 p.m. PT — Take the NL Central, please. Nobody wants it, and here come the Cards. Gee, I sure hope another 83-win team wins the World Series this year.
• Diamondbacks at Braves, 4:05 p.m. PT — Bobby Cox has his team in the wild card chase. Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine have been replaced by Buddy Carlyle and Chuck James. But, oh, that is a fun lineup.

There you go…

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Go give it a listen; you’ll be glad you did…

Post from: Knuckle Curve

But I’ll give it a shot anyway.

In Clemens’ big-league debut, on May 15, 1984, he faced the Cleveland Indians and got a no-decision. Clemens didn’t pitch particularly well, but he played alongside or against a Hall of Famer (Wade Boggs), the father of a current big leaguer (Tony Armas), a front-office staffer (Reid Nichols), a field manager (Mike Hargrove), and… wait for it… Julio Franco!

I love Franco. That dude will survive a nuclear holocaust.

Wait, this post was supposed to be about Clemens. Oh well…

Post from: Knuckle Curve