April 9, 2005, 1:27AM
Clemens does double duty
Rocket ties Carlton with 329th career win, drives in go-ahead runs with 6th-inning single
By JOSE DE JESUS ORTIZ
Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle
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• ASTROS/MLB: Full Chronicle coverage, boxscores, stats
As the Cincinnati Reds prepared to intentionally walk No. 8 hitter Willy Taveras in the sixth inning, Roger Clemens turned to Astros manager Phil Garner for instructions.
A pinch hitter would have been called for most pitchers, especially because the score was tied and a runner already was on base.
But Clemens is different. He's a once-a-generation righthander some consider the best pitcher in major-league history. With the game on the line, he has generally found a way to win.
So Garner let Clemens hit, and Clemens came through with a two-run single to beat the Reds 3-2 Friday night at Minute Maid Park.
Clemens, 42, excelled on the mound and at the plate to begin his 22nd season with his 329th victory.
"He's amazing," Garner said after the Astros handed the Reds their first loss of the season. "You're watching a legend. That's all there is to it. It's just absolutely amazing."
With the victory, Clemens moved into a tie with former Cardinals and Phillies star Steve Carlton for ninth on the all-time wins list.
"Here we are again talking about things I didn't think we'd be talking about," Clemens said after holding the Reds to one run on five hits with nine strikeouts in seven innings before a crowd of 36,382 at Minute Maid Park. "To tie Steve Carlton, he's one of the best ever, and to have my name alongside of him is a tremendous honor."
With the score tied at 1, Clemens stood on the verge of failure in the sixth. Showing the guile that has made him one of the best pitchers and competitors of all-time, he averted disaster in the top of the inning, then took care of the win with his bat.
"This guy honestly is just amazing," closer Brad Lidge said after collecting a four-out save. "He's just amazing to watch."
Clemens was at his competitive best after giving up consecutive singles to start the sixth. Ryan Freel led off the inning with a pinch single to center. D'Angelo Jimenez followed with a single to right, putting runners at the corners for Ken Griffey Jr.
Striking out Junior
Griffey worked the count to 3-0, but Clemens wasn't ready to give in. He teased Griffey with a 3-0 fastball out of the strike zone, fooling the slugger just enough to keep him from checking his swing in time.
Griffey fouled the next pitch to fill the count. With Jimenez running, Griffey took a backdoor slider for a called third strike. As Astros catcher Brad Ausmus threw to second, Freel took off for home.
Shortstop Adam Everett sprinted in front of the bag to take the throw and fire it home in time to double up Freel.
"I just happened to see (Freel) break early," Everett said. "Brad made a great throw to me. It was chest-high and gave me a chance to throw him out at home. Right there you're thinking you got Griffey, and you got (Sean) Casey (coming up next).
"If Griffey strikes out there, they normally don't try a double-steal right there, especially with Casey coming up. But they did."
Clemens, whose lone mistake was the 2-0 fastball Joe Randa ripped into the concourse behind the left-center field wall to tie the score in the fifth, got out of the sixth inning by striking out Casey on a 1-2 splitter.
Luke Scott, who tripled and scored on Jason Lane's sacrifice fly to give the Astros a 1-0 lead in the second inning, led off the bottom of the sixth with a single up the middle. Lane followed with a single to left. After Ausmus hit into a double play, righthander Matt Belisle intentionally walked Taveras, who then stole second.
"I was on deck, and when I looked at their catcher and they were going to walk Willy I turned to skip and said, 'What have we got?' " Clemens said. "He goes, 'Drive 'em in.' "
Few would have blamed Garner for calling on a pinch hitter, considering Mike Lamb had come off the bench Wednesday to drive in the winning runs.
But on this night, Garner didn't even consider hitting for Clemens.
"You know he's going to do it," Garner said. "You know he's going to do something. You just feel it in your bones that it's going to happen.
"It's his game. I can't think of anybody better I'd rather have that game in his hands. It's Roger's game. I made the decision that he was going another inning at least, so I let him have the game."
Aurilia can't make playClemens quickly fell behind 0-2, but he took the next three pitches to fill the count before hitting his two-run single up the middle. Though Reds shortstop Rich Aurilia made a diving stab at the ball, he couldn't keep his grip while attempting to throw to first.
After the ball popped up from Aurilia's grasp, a tremendous roar through the park greeted the 3-1 lead.
"I was fortunate to get 3-2 and got a ball (to hit)," Clemens said. "It seemed like first base was running from me, especially after I took a quick glance under my eye and noticed that they knocked the ball down to keep it in the infield."
jesus.ortiz@chron.com
Cy Young ceremony
In a pregame ceremony tonight, the Astros will honor Roger Clemens for extending his record Cy Young collection last season to seven with his first in the National League.
Clemens will receive gifts commemorating his achievement, but it's fair to say he probably won't get a burnt orange Hummer like the one Andy Pettitte and the rest of the two pitchers' former Yankees teammates purchased for the future Hall of Famer in 2003.
"He's gotten plenty enough gifts," joked Pettitte, Clemens' best friend on the club. "I don't think he needs anymore gifts."
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