Bergen County Record
Sunday, June 10, 2007
NEW YORK -- The index and middle fingers are placed outside the narrow seams, creating enough of a split to give the nickname meaning. Properly thrown, the splitter becomes a mirage -- designed to look and act like a fastball until, without warning, it drops violently out of the strike zone.
For most pitchers, the splitter is a secondary weapon. For Roger Clemens, it's like oxygen. Without it, he'd be contemplating life on the golf course, and would've never walked off the mound to a standing ovation at the Stadium.
Anyone who loves storybook scripts would've appreciated the Yankees' 9-3 win over the Pirates on Saturday, considering it was Clemens' homecoming and his coronation as the Bombers' savior. On one level, it was indeed perfect: Clemens threw six crisp innings, struck out seven (five of them on splitters), and the Yankees took advantage of a sorry National League team en route to their eighth win in 10 games.
Talk about nostalgia: the sounds of Elton John's "Rocket Man" thundered throughout the ballpark in the sixth inning as Clemens headed toward the dugout. The future Hall of Famer finished off the Pirates by striking out Xavier Nady and Ryan Doumit, Nos. 6 and 7 on the day, the latter succumbing to the mystery of Clemens' eternal blessing, the splitter.
Derek Jeter comes over and shares a laugh with Roger Clemens on the mound before he throws his first pitch of the game.
It's still an elite-caliber pitch, breaking so late it forces hitters to commit to what they believe is a fastball. Yet, no one talked about Clemens reclaiming the title of the game's premier power pitcher. He's anything but that now, forced to rely on finesse and deception to tame a no-threat lineup like the Pirates'.
Clemens said, "I expect to get stronger," which was his way of admitting he's no longer the pitcher who could throw a 98-mph four-seam fastball into the middle of the strike zone and live to tell about it. The Stadium's radar-gun readings told you everything about what the Rocket is – and what he is not. His fastball averaged between 89-91 mph, while his splitter, clocked at 94 mph in its prime, has been downsized to a more mortal 86.
Say this much for Clemens, though. He proved on Saturday that he can win with diminished stuff. Unlike Randy Johnson, who spent two summers in pinstripes mindlessly throwing the ball as hard as he could (and ballooning his ERA to 5.00 last year), the Rocket has a much keener sense of a hitter's thought process and how they're likely to react at different points in the at-bat.
While Johnson was too stubborn to give up his power-pitching mentality, Clemens has morphed into something closer to Greg Maddux, who succeeds without ever touching 90 mph. He does so by throwing what hitters least expect – or, in industry parlance, pitching backward.
The Pirates, who'd seen Clemens for the past three years in Houston, were aware of the change.
"I don't think his fastball is where it wants it to be [in velocity], but the guy is 44 years old," said Doumit, who noticed more and more off-speed pitches the second and third time through the order.
That plan clearly works against National League hitters, although Clemens will be hard-pressed to contain American League powerhouses such as the Red Sox and Tigers and Indians. If this is what Clemens is as he approaches his 45th birthday – a buffet table of splitters, slow curveballs and two-seam fastballs – then it'll be up to Chien-Ming Wang and Andy Pettitte to do the heavy lifting in the race for the playoffs.
But that's not to say Clemens won't help. The moment he takes the mound, he becomes an instant upgrade over Matt DeSalvo or Tyler Clippard or anyone else the Yankees have been using to round out the rotation. And who knows, maybe Clemens' presence will somehow help Mike Mussina regain his fastball. Mussina is down to 87 mph on his four-seamer, so lacking in arm strength he's barely averaging four strikeouts per nine innings.
The Rocket has enormous presence, both on and off the field, and that means for pitchers and position players, veterans and 20-somethings. Somehow, Clemens touches them all, which is why Joe Torre was speaking for the entire organization when he said, "When Roger is on your side, you feel you have an advantage."
It's that simple, really. Clemens is strong, assertive, vocal, in ways that Wang and Pettitte and Mussina are not. After allowing Jack Wilson a two-run double in the fourth inning, tying the game at 3-3, Clemens marched into the dugout and loudly told his teammates, "My fault, guys, my fault."
Coincidence or not, the Yankees responded by scoring in each of their last four innings, turning the rest of the game into glorified batting practice. Afterward, Clemens said all the right things about coming home ("it was an honor"), about the Yankees' surplus of talent ("this isn't a good team, it's a great team") and grading his own performance limitations ("we won today, so I give it an A").
It was as easy a Day One as Clemens could've hoped for. But there are more challenging tests ahead, especially if the Yankees decide to pitch Clemens on Friday against the Mets, who have the equivalent of an American League lineup. Torre says, "Roger will get better" in the coming weeks.
He may have to, although on Day One, who would dare to complain?
E-mail: klapisch@northjersey.com
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By the numbers
270
Games played by the Phillies' Shane Victorino going into the weekend, placing him fifth on the all-time list for Hawaiian-born players. Tops on the list is Mike Lum, who played 1,511 games from 1967-81.
21
Families have produced three or more siblings who've played in the big leagues. One notable member of this small fraternity passed away last week: former Yankee third baseman Clete Boyer, who played with brothers Ken and Cloyd.
130
Pitches thrown by Daisuke Matsuzaka on Tuesday were the most by a starter so far this season.
210
Batters faced by the Indians' Paul Byrd before he finally issued a walk this year, the longest streak in the majors. Byrd's run lasted 481/3 innings.
5
More doubles needed by Craig Biggio to pass Nap Lajoie for the most doubles ever by a right-handed hitter. Lajoie had 657 two-baggers, sixth on the all-time list. The top five spots are held by left-handed or switch-hitters.
Power rankings
1. Red Sox: Still the AL's premier team, although the Angels are on the move.
2. Angels: Our preseason pick to go to the World Series.
3. Mets: How about Jorge Sosa as Shea's biggest surprise.
4. Indians: Can anyone touch C.C. Sabathia this year?
5. Phillies: Sweep of the Mets keeps Charlie Manuel's administration alive a little longer.
On this date
1972: Passing Willie Mays into second place on the career home run list, Hank Aaron hits his 649th round-tripper. It is Aaron's 14th grand slam, tying Gil Hodges' National League record.
They said it
"When I strike a guy out, I walk off. I don't fist pump. I don't try to show up their team. You get to the major leagues, that's where you're supposed to show your class."
-- Phillies' Cole Hamels, telling the Philadelphia Daily News why he objected to Paul Lo Duca flipping his bat after hitting a home run Thursday at Shea.
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News items
Giambi an easy target
The steroids scandal slogs interminably on, this time as Jason Giambi has been told by Bud Selig to cooperate with the Mitchell investigation. There's no one to root for here: Giambi is still trying to finesse his away around an admission of guilt, while the commissioner is busy picking on an easy target.
Officials at Major League Baseball are furious at Giambi for comments he made in USA Today, in which he said the sport owed everyone an apology for the proliferation of ''that stuff.'' One executive said of the Yankees' slugger, "If he feels that bad about it, why is he still accepting a paycheck? Why doesn't he give the money back instead of blaming everyone else?''
Apparently, Selig is getting even with Giambi for throwing the entire industry under the bus, ordering him to talk to George Mitchell. That's called score settling at its worst. If the commissioner really wants to flex some muscle, why doesn't he issue the same edict to Barry Bonds?
Schilling's near no-no
Every once in a while, you're reminded of the random unpredictable outcomes in baseball, which is the greatest reason to eternally love the game. It was only a week ago that Curt Schilling was lit up by the Yankees for four runs and nine hits in just five innings. In his previous start against the Bombers, Schilling allowed five runs and 12 hits in six innings.
So who could've known the Red Sox' righty would come so close to making history? He came within one out of a no-hitter against the A's on Thursday, denied at the last moment by Shannon Stewart's opposite-field single.
It's hard to believe this was the same Schilling who was battered up and down by the Yankees, but that's baseball's enduring charm -- even the most vulnerable pitcher can instantly reclaim his skills. Not a bad turnaround for a 40-year-old pitcher who was once the Red Sox' best pitcher. Schilling proved (once again) that nothing is impossible.
Where's Big Unit?
There's been plenty written about the stay-at-home clause in Roger Clemens' contract, and understandably so. There's reason to wonder just how often the Rocket will exercise it and whether it will affect morale in the clubhouse.
But if Clemens is on the hot seat, so should Randy Johnson, who has the same privileges with the Diamondbacks. Since he's starting this afternoon, he'll be missing this week's trip to the Bronx, just as he skipped Arizona's road series against the Mets earlier this month. Since opening day, Johnson has bailed out three times on his teammates.
The difference between Johnson and Clemens, of course, is their standing with their respective teams. The Yankees actually like the Rocket and prefer that he stick around as much as possible. The same can't be said of the socially-handicapped Johnson. The more he stays away, the happier the D-Backs will be.
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