Rocket Man!

Rocket Man

It's Been A Long, Long Time

With all of this controversy surrounding the resurgence of disgraced Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez, as well as the upcoming number retirement of Andy Pettitte, the time has come for the Yankees to ask a very important question.

You see, every year I sit and wait, like so many other fans, to see who the Yankees invited to their annual Old Timers' Day. It is a time to celebrate and commemorate the great moments of past Yankees, especially, as Yankees radio announcer John Sterling says, World Champions, All Stars, and even a few Hall of Famers. While I am well aware that he will never be the latter, it is time to bury the proverbial hatchet and invite Roger Clemens to the 2016 Old Timers' Day festivities.

Clemens, seen here with the Yankees, has been absent from team functions since his retirement in 2007. Photo courtesy of RealClearSports

Clemens spent six seasons with the Yankees, during which he amassed an 83-42 record and a 4.01 ERA, good for a .664 winning percentage. Not to mention a 7-4 postseason record, coming through when it counted most.

Full disclosure: I loved Roger Clemens. As a kid, I practically worshiped the man for all of the "super-human" success he had. Well, time has passed and I have lost that childlike innocence. I'm not stupid. I know full well that the reason for his success was more than likely caused by some form of performance-enhancing drugs, and as much as it pained me to learn, we all need to look ahead as well as what's past.

Last year, the San Francisco Giants hired Barry Bonds, Major League Baseball's home run king, as an advisor. The St. Louis Cardinals hired Mark McGwire as hitting coach in 2010, though he is now with the Dodgers. The Chicago Cubs hired Manny Ramirez as a hitting consultant.

The Yankees have embraced A-Rod, arguably the biggest cheater of all-time, as one of their own again. Never mind that Rodriguez, who has a career .263 postseason batting average, has been a perennial playoff choker, and the only player in baseball history to end his team's season two consecutive years with a strikeout. Yet Clemens remains locked out. Clemens, the two-time World Series Champion. 

On a hot summer day in 2016, John Sterling (or Michael Kay) will call out his stats. "He was the ace of the Yankees staff..."; "His 20-1 start to the 2001 season..."; or even "His intense demeanor on the field..." will be remembered. But most of all, he will be back in the one uniform where he belongs, Yankee pinstripes.

So I'm calling for Hank and Hal Steinbrenner, Randy Levine, and Debbie Tymon, (who organizes the annual event) to end the boycott! You let A-Rod back in after he wronged you several times.

It's time to give Clemens the same treatment.

(Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images) Courtesy of CBS Cleveland

In Defense of Andy Pettitte

Recently the Yankees announced that they would retire the numbers of three of the greatest players in franchise history, and give them plaques in Monument Park. Bernie Williams, Jorge Posada, and Andy Pettitte. Posada, a decent Hall of Fame case notwithstanding, and the great Bernie Williams have certainly earned the honor. Pettitte, however, raised many questions, due to his use of the banned-substance Human Growth Hormone (HGH). Many were appalled at the notion that the Yankees would knowingly honor a cheater.

But is Pettitte a cheater? That answer isn't what you might think.

Pettitte admitted in a 2007 press conference that he did, in fact, use HGH in 2002 in order to heal his ailing elbow quicker and return to form in time to pitch again during the season. There is no question about that. He was never banned or suspended for the incidents.

Because he never used a banned substance.

HGH was not banned by Major League Baseball until January 2005, nearly three years after Pettitte used it. Furthermore, it does not appear to have given him an edge, as his win total actually decreased from 15 to 13 during the season, due in part to his injury. There is no evidence that Pettitte benefited at all from his use of the HGH.

His numbers speak for themselves, 256 wins against 153 losses, and 19 postseason victories (an MLB record). His 2,020 strikeouts in pinstripes are a Yankee record, 219 wins third all-time, and 438 games started tie for first with Whitey Ford. His 148 wins from 2000-2009 were the most of any pitcher during the decade, and he played a vital role in five World Series Championships (1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, and 2009).

And according to the rules, he really did do it all clean.

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