So the past few months in baseball have not revolved around some blockbuster trades – like Santana to the Mets or Bedard to the Mariners (I would argue the latter is a better deal than the former) – but rather the Mitchell Report and the consequential fall out from that report. The two BIGGEST names in this report are Roger Clemens and Andy Pettite.
Andy Pettite has since come out and said that he used HGH twice – once when injected by Brian McNamee and once when he injected himself with HGH supplied by his father. His conduct in this matter has been admirable. Whereas many people have dodged questions (“I am not here to answer questions about my past” – Mark McGwire), and some people have flat out lied about their usage (Barry Bonds, seriously?), Andy Pettite has stepped up to the plate and come clean with the public and the press. His one hour news conference yesterday afternoon showed his commitment to letting the complete truth be known. He has shown the principle that taking the blame and admitting guilt in the short run is way better than the alternative of risking his legacy and lying for the long term. His conduct through this process will only help the game, not hurt it.
Roger Clemens, on the other hand, is digging himself a deeper and deeper hole. I won’t comment on whether I think he’s lying or telling the truth, but I really hope its the latter. I am a huge Roger Clemens fan, and I certainly hope all of his performance since the late 90’s has been natural and not substance enhanced. We all know he has some of the more ridiculous work outs in the summertime, so many think that he could be clean. More to come later when we find out the entire situation on Clemens.
-K
