A couple weeks ago I wondered why we believed Andy Pettitte and his story of brief, injury-driven steroid use. At the time, it seemed like the public was somewhat okay with Pettitte’s explanation and sort of gave him a pass. (NOTE: a lot of that sentiment has faded into distrust of Pettitte also, but at the time, I thought the question worth asking. It even generated a lively discussion on in the comments of that post.) In almost a complete contrary to the [immediate] public reaction to Pettitte’s qualified, yet spirited mea culpa, the public reaction to Roger Clemens’s bold-faced denial is complete distrust and public admonishment of the 7-time Cy Young award winner. Just as I raised the [semi-rhetorical] question of why we believed Andy Pettitte, I raise the question of why we do not believe Roger Clemens.
Where is the benefit of the doubt? Where is the innocent until proven guilty? Why can we not just wait and see about all of this so-called “evidence?”
I do not like Roger Clemens. I never have, and I never will. I think he is cocky, brash and obnoxious. I think he sees himself as an almighty figure who does not need to travel with his team or even play the first couple months of the season. But, does this make him a cheater? I do not want to believe Roger Clemens, but is there really enough evidence to convict him? I say, no…
…But, you know what? I don’t care. I do not believe Roger Clemens in any way whatsoever.
I would love to explain all the reasons why, but a much better writer already did it for me. Gene Wojciechowski’s latest blog entry on ESPN.com sums up exactly how I feel. I love his very first point about the complete hypocrisy of Clemens’s defense that “steroids are a short-term fix” and anyone who takes them will get “punishment enough” by what is done to their bodies over the long-term. Yet, as Wojchiechowski so astutely points out, Clemens boasts about taking pain injections and numbing agents so that he could pitch with a “golf-ball sized knot in his elbow.”
I am not going to pile on the best pitcher of our time (much like everyone did to the best hitter of our time) because I think, this time, the public is getting it right. I am not, generally, a cynical malcontent who believes that everyone is cheating and nothing is pure anymore, but in the case of this steroid fiasco in baseball, when there is smoke, there has proven to always be fire.
When it came out yesterday that he was suing McNamee, it made me step back for a second. By doing that, he’s opening himself up to testifying under oath about everything that went on. Not that I ever believed him for even a second, but for a moment I said, “Well, maybe everyone should just step back and see how this plays out”.
But then something occurred to me. Put yourself in the shoes of a completely innocent player accused of steroid use in the Mitchell Report. What would be your first reaction? Wouldn’t you IMMEDIATELY tell anyone and everyone, through any means available, “The testimony in that report are lies, I have never taken steroids, and I’m outraged to be accused like this without a shred of actual evidence”. Now, that is basically exactly what Clemens is saying noe. The problem is, it took him until something like TEN DAYS after the report came out to make those statements. Why? I’m sure he would say, “I had to consult with my lawyers”, or something like that. But if you KNOW you’re innocent, if you’ve NEVER taken steroids, why do you have to consult with your lawyers? That’s why right now I’m going to keep assuming Clemens is guilty and everyone else probably should as well.