Roger Clemens
Roger Clemens
William Roger Clemens, nicknamed "Rocket", is a retired American baseball pitcher who played 24 seasons in Major League Baseballfor four teams. Clemens was one of the most dominant pitchers in major league history, tallying 354 wins, a 3.12 earned run average, and 4,672 strikeouts, the third-most all time. An 11-time All-Star and two-time World Series champion, he won seven Cy Young Awards during his career, the most of any pitcher in history. Clemens was known for his fierce competitive nature...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionBaseball Player
Date of Birth4 August 1962
CityDayton, OH
CountryUnited States of America
I was trying to find some rhythm after my last start, throwing my last two innings with just my arm, ... This time around I was trying to get the mechanics down and get good pitches, and I wasn't able to do it.
I know the throwing part of it was fine, and I appreciate the guys letting me get out there and do this. Once we knew we'd be doing the World Game stuff, we talked to (Major League Baseball and got their approval), and it's a nice situation to get out there and get some work done.
I've been doing enough work -- throwing and conditioning -- to get ready for what I'm going to do the next eight to 10 days, enough to train with Mac and the intensity he trains with. I broke a cleat off on this hard, red clay here in Florida, so that must mean I'm close to being ready.
there are a handful of us that are a bit older and might not get that chance again.
There are a few guys (on the Mexican team) that we do know, that I'm able to recognize and realize what they can and can't do. But as it goes on now, we're able to get a little more film. I'll look over what Jake did, and some of our other right-handers, and then I'll make my assessment from there.
When you leave a ball in the middle, the guys hit it. That's just the way it is. There's nothing different than the postseason or regular season - get ahead, expand the strike zone and move people around, same thing that you do all year.
When Phil turned to me and said, 'Get your jersey and spikes on,' I knew he was dead serious. So we got to it, and I had to pick my spot to get out there in the bullpen. I don't really relish what those guys have to go through.
When Phil looked at me and said, 'Get your jersey and spikes on', he was dead serious about it,
The reason why I ended up stopping over there was my showing him respect back. They took the time out to come to Houston and speak to me about the future.
You have to be out there a long time,
You have to be mistake-free, so I was trying to be as stingy as possible.
I don't remember a great deal about it,
This was another game where, by the second or third inning, you get the feel that, 'Here we go again. You want to have good stuff and make good pitches. Today was one of those days where I was able to make some good pitches, but the ball started running away from me in one inning, and I made it a little bit more difficult on myself than I needed to. Overall, it was a battle.
You'd think, ... it would have to wear on you.