Yankees Daily

Please Roger, go away

It’s time for Roger Clemens to go away. It’s January and we have a lot of time left before the start of the baseball season. This time last year, the newspapers were constantly writing about Clemens, and it drove me crazy. I think he did do steroids and I want him to be found guilty if he goes to trial, but I don’t want to read about it, day after day.

It gives the sportswriters something to write about since the news is slow; I understand that. But I hope I don’t have to read about it two years in a row. The New York Daily News has an article, just posted last night about Roger Clemens and the grand jury considering perjury evidence.

My thought on this is simple: Roger, please go away. Far away. I don’t want to read about you anymore and I don’t want to know what you are doing.

On a side note, a few things…

Some people couldn’t believe the Giants lost to the Eagles. I believe it. They didn’t play well at the end of the season and they don’t have a number one receiver. They’ll have to get one in the draft.

I believe the Cardinals are going to win the Super Bowl against the Steelers.

Rickey Henderson was an easy choice for the Hall of Fame, but I’m not so sure Jim Rice was. I feel that Rice made it because some voters were always on the fence with him making the Hall, and they realized that this was their last chance to change their mind, it being Rice’s last year on the writers’ ballot.

If Roger Clemen’s wife turns on him, she could be a possible witness that Clemens did steroids. That could be another reason why McNamee’s lawyer Richard Emery is bringing this forward. “I cannot refute anything in the story,” a tearful but resolute McCready told the Daily News, which broke the story at midnight Sunday.

Sources told The News McCready also received hefty checks courtesy of Clemens – some in the amount of $25,000 – that were channeled to the singer through an intermediary.

Such an arrangement raises questions as to why Clemens would go through a third party to give money to McCready if she and the Rocket were just friends.

• Mindy McCready weeps as she confirms affair with Roger Clemens – TERI THOMPSON, MICHAEL O’KEEFFE and NATHANIEL VINTON in New York and CHRISTIAN RED in Nashville
• Defending Roger, for the moment – Wallace Matthews – Newsday

According to the NY Daily News, Roger Clemens had an affair with country star Mindy McCready who I never heard of in my life. Who knows if it’s true or not.

• Sources: Roger Clemens had 10-year fling with country star Mindy McCready – TERI THOMPSON and NATHANIEL VINTON in New York and CHRISTIAN RED in Nashville

The Clemens Inquiry NYYFANS.comFORUM

The F.B.I. has opened up a criminal investigation into whether Roger Clemens lied under oath during his private deposition and in his public testimony when meeting with Congress.

• F.B.I. Says Clemens Inquiry Has Begun – MICHAEL S. SCHMIDT – New York Times
• Pettitte Says He Hates Having a Role in a Legal Drama – TYLER KEPNER – NY Times
• Astros Set to Rethink Clemens’s Presence – JACK CURRY – New York Times
• Pettitte keeping focus on baseball – Ed Price – Star-Ledger
• HGH mess still not over – Pete Caldera – Bergen Record
• Pettitte still in thick of performance-enhancing-drugs scandal – Peter Abraham – Journal News
• Pettitte Realizes Distractions Not Over – KAT O’BRIEN – Newsday
• ROCKET PROBE BLASTING OFF – BRIAN COSTELLO – New York Post
• HUGHES: YOU’D HAVE TO BE STUPID TO USE NOW – MIKE VACCARO – New York Post
• MUM’S THE WORD – FINALLY – FOR CLEMENS – KEVIN KERNAN – New York Post
• ASTROS MAY RECONSIDER ROG’S DEAL – KEVIN KERNAN – New York Post
• FEHR: HGH BLOOD TESTS POSSIBLE – Associated Press
• PETTITTE’S PAIN – GEORGE A. KING III – New York Post
• Andy Pettitte in no-win situation – MARK FEINSAND – New York Daily News
• Focus on Texas trainer – TERI THOMPSON, MICHAEL O’KEEFFE, CHRISTIAN RED and NATHANIEL VINTON – New York Daily News

  Reading Break

• FBI opens inquiry into Clemens – TERI THOMPSON, MICHAEL O’KEEFFE, CHRISTIAN RED and NATHANIEL VINTON – New York Daily News
• Tattletales deserve love, too – Johnette Howard – Newsday

I don’t know if I should start a list of Roger’s Clemens’ news or put him in the spring training category but I get the feeling that a lot today’s news will be about Roger Clemens again. I’m sure a lot of fans know what’s going on with Clemens and him being investigated by the Justice Department but if you aren’t sure, let me explain. Congress asked the Justice Department to investigate whether Clemens committed perjury and made knowingly false statements under oath.

An 18-page memorandum on Clemens was prepared for Waxman by Democratic staffers on the committee to underline the case against Clemens.

“There is little reason to believe that Mr. McNamee would provide truthful testimony about Mr. Pettitte and Mr. Knoblauch, but false testimony about Mr. Clemens,” the memorandum said.

• Investigation of Clemens Is Sought – RICHARD SANDOMIR and MICHAEL S. SCHMIDT – New York Times
• Reporters Seeking Reaction From Clemens Receive Brushback – JACK CURRY – New York Times
• Girardi hopes Pettitte will get in-season reprieve – Ed Price – Star Ledger
• O’Connor: No Clemency for Rocket – Ian O’Connor – Bergen Record
• ROGER CAN’T PITCH HIS WAY OUT OF THIS JAM – KEVIN KERNAN – New York Post
• LEGAL STORM MAY WATERLOG PETTITTE – GEORGE A. KING III – New York Post
• SHAYS: CAN’T LIE LIKE THIS TO CONGRESS – BRIAN COSTELLO – New York Post
• ROG CAN’T PITCH AROUND NOVITZKY – BRIAN COSTELLO – New York Post
• Andy is only concern for Hank & Yanks – Mark Feinsand – New York Daily News
• Congress passes ball to Justice – TERI THOMPSON, CHRISTIAN RED, NATHANIEL VINTON and MICHAEL O’KEEFFE – NY Daily News
• Roger Clemens may trade Hall of Fame for halls of prison – Mike Lupica – NY Daily News
• New hearing, but not much buzz – NATHANIEL VINTON – NY Daily News
• It’s solely Justice’s call on Clemens – Larry McShane – NY Daily News

Reading Break

• Republican rips referral, admits Roger Clemens lies likely – NATHANIEL VINTON – NY Daily News
• Joe Torre is sorry Rocket’s suffering – John Harper – NY Daily News
• Congressional committee asks Justice Dept. to probe Roger Clemens’ denials – LARRY MCSHANE – NY Daily News
• Roger Clemens’ plight no surprise to Brian McNamee’s legal team – MICHAEL O’KEEFFE and TERI THOMPSON – NY Daily News
• Roger Clemens plays dodge ball again – ANTHONY McCARRON – NY Daily News
• Pettitte feels for his friend Clemens – Bryan Hoch – Yankees Official
• Andy Pettitte tries to focus on baseball, not investigation of Roger Clemens – MSG
• Astros may reconsider Clemens’ deal – Associated Press
• Union may consider blood testing – Associated Press
• Pettitte hopes to avoid testifying this summer – Pete Caldera – Bergen Record
• Were Clemens’ ‘implausible’ comments perjury? – Lance Williams – San Francisco Chronicle
• FBI begins investigation on Clemens – Associated Press
• Roger Clemency – Steve Henson – Yahoo! Sports
  

Go here to vote at Peter Abrahams blog to vote whether you think Clemens lied to Congress

Take the poll: Did Clemens lie to Congress?

The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform have taken the first steps toward asking the Department of Justice to launch a criminal investigation into whether Roger Clemens perjured himself.

• REPORT: CLEMENS COULD FACE PERJURY CHARGE – Brain Costello – NY Post
• More heat for the Rocket – Peter Abraham – LoHud
• Clemens May Face Perjury Charges – Greg Cohen – Sliding Into Home

It looks as though the steroids saga is going to go on for a wile until the Yankees’ season starts. Mike Mussina believes that Andy Pettitte will have to deal with chants from Boston fans which might include “HGH” and “derogatory chants about how he received the drugs from his father, Tom.” Pettitte will have to stay focused this year if he wants to succeed which he’s shown he was able to do by pitching while his father underwent double-bypass surgery.

• Pettitte Is Now Working on His Damage Control – JACK CURRY – New York Times
• Enough of steroids: Let’s get back to sports – Johnette Howard – Newsday
• McNamee Attorney: GOP Congressmen Should Resign – MATT JAFFE – ABC News
• Pettitte’s shadow looms large over Clemens case, Yankees – Jayson Stark – ESPN
• Will Little Leaguers still admire Clemens? – Al Neuharth – USA TODAY founder
• In Clemens saga, we’re blaming the wrong guy – Jason Whitlock – Kansas City Star
• Yanks to support embattled Pettitte – Eduardo A. Encina – St. Petersburg Times
• Relaxed Andy Pettitte won’t discuss Roger Clemens until next week – RICH SCHAPIRO in Deer Park, Texas and LARRY McSHANE – New York Daily News
• Roger Clemens should look like Barry Bonds in eyes of law – Mike Lupica – New York Daily News
• Mike Mussina clean, but not angry – John Harper – New York Daily News
• Pedro Martinez proud of clean rehab in steroid-plagued era – Bill Madden – New York Daily News
• Roger Clemens has his public erring – Filip Bondy – New York Daily News
• Suzyn Waldman in sticky situation – Bob Raissman – New York Daily News
• Roger Clemens finished as pitchman – DAVE GOLDINER – New York Daily News
• TRANSCRIPT SHOWS TRAINER TRIED TO STAY LOYAL TO ROG – BRIAN COSTELLO – New York Post
• HURST: ROG’S PLIGHT HURTS – KEVIN KERNAN – New York Post
• Mussina: I did it my way – clean – KAT O’BRIEN – Newsday
• Yankees weigh in on Pettitte-HGH controversy – Peter Abraham – Journal News
• Phil Sheridan: Baseball’s culture of cheating remains alive – Phil Sheridan – Philadelphia Inquirer
• Rocket’s not an ace on the Hill – Tom Knott – Washington Times
• Clemens won’t back down – Gene Collier – Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
• Political mix skews opinion on Clemens – Garth Woolsey – Toronto Star
• Clemens may never learn that honesty’s still best policy – Bruce Jenkins – San Francisco Chronicle
• Hall won’t call Clemens or Pettitte – RICHARD JUSTICE – Houston Chronicle
• Waxman Regrets Hearing Was Held – DUFF WILSON and MICHAEL S. SCHMIDT – New York Times
• Presidential politics could take Roger Clemens off the hook – CHRISTIAN RED, MICHAEL O’KEEFFE and TERI THOMPSON – New York Daily News
• Transcripts: McNamee tried to balance Clemens loyalty, pressure from feds – Mark Fainaru-Wada – ESPN
• Congress misses the point about MLB’s real drug issue – Shaun Assael – ESPN

Clemens’ arrogance might get him in trouble with Congress. He didn’t have to appear before them and now he might suffer the ultimate penalty which is jail. If Clemens is brought down, Brian McNamee is not the one who did but it was his good friend Andy Pettitte.

• Klapisch: Clemens’ worst days ahead – Bob Klapisch – Bergen Record
• Chuck Knoblauch story hits target – TERI THOMPSON – New York Daily News
• Brian Cashman laments Yankees’ role in steroid controversy – MARK FEINSAND – New York Daily News
• Bronx bummers drag Joe Torre down – Bill Madden – New York Daily News
• Clemens hearing tears at Torre – PETER KERASOTIS – Florida Today
• Roger Clemens’ wild pitches of denial only deliver even more doubt – Mike Lupica – New York Daily News
• The infield lie rule – New York Daily News
• Somebody’s telling lies – New York Daily News
• Roger Clemens could be facing criminal investigation next – CHRISTIAN RED, NATHANIEL VINTON, TERI THOMPSON and MICHAEL O’KEEFFE – New York Daily News
• Expert on body language says Roger Clemens had something to hide CORKY SIEMASZKO – New York Daily News
• Roger Clemens again insists he has never taken steroids – LARRY McSHANE – New York Daily News
• Ex-MLB slugger Glenallen Hill admits steroid use – JIM SEIMAS – Santa Cruz Sentinel
• For Clemens, No Joy Found in Testimony – DUFF WILSON – New York Times
• CONE SAYS HE NEVER GOT ADVICE FROM MCNAMEE – JOEL SHERMAN – New York Post
• McNamee’s lawyer predicts Clemens pardon – Ronald Blum – Associated Press
• Did the Rocket Misfire? – The Wall Street Journal
• Clemens’ answer? Blame everyone but himself – Howard Bryant – ESPN
• Donaldson: Clemens hearing was a comedy show, and not a very good one – JIM DONALDSON – Providence Journal
• McNamee’s lawyer: Bush would pardon Clemens – A.J. Perez – USA Today

That was a lot today. I’m happy it’s over. I don’t want to post anything about Clemens and steroids again but I get the feeling that there will be more news on it and people do like reading about it especially since Clemens was a Yankee and Pettitte is a Yankee. Basically what happened today, Congress grilled McNamee and Clemens good and asked Clemens why should they believe him when Pettitte who is a religious man said that Roger Clemens did steroids.

• Dueling statements as hearing begins – Lance Williams – San Francisco Chronicle
• Clemens Denies Drug Use in Congressional Testimony – Bloomberg
• McNamee: I injected Clemens more often than previously claimed – Canadian Press
• Live Analysis of Clemens Hearings – Alan Schwarz – New York Times
• Text: Clemens’s Statement
• Text: McNamee’s Statement
• Live blogging the Clemens hearing – James Oliphant – Chicago Tribune
• Live video of the Hearing
• Pettitte says he used HGH supplied by father in 2004 – Associated Press
• Clemens says Pettitte ‘misremembered’ him; McNamee grilled – Associated Press
• Live: Phil Sheridan blogs – Clemens hearing: – The Philadelphia Inquirer
• Round 2: Clemens vs. McNamee – Jayson Stark’s ESPN live blog
• Waxman Says Clemens Lied in Deposition to Congress – Larry DiTore and Danielle Sessa – Bloomberg
• How the Clemens case unfolded – USA Today
• Questions going forward will focus on Clemens more than McNamee – Lester Munson – ESPN
• Yankees allow Pettitte to report late – Anthony DiComo – Yankees Official
• Clemens says Pettitte ‘misremembered’ him; McNamee grilled – ESPN
• Pettitte wasn’t in room, but his words carried much of the day – Gene Wojciechowski – ESPN
• Exclusive: Andy Pettitte received performance-enhancers from father – TERI THOMPSON, MICHAEL O’KEEFFE, CHRISTIAN RED and NATHANIEL VINTON – New York Daily News
• Congress isn’t done with steroids probe – Michael O’Keeffe – New York Daily News
• Knoblauch corroborates Pettitte’s testimony – KEN DAVIDOFF – Newsday