Clemens - Did the Red Sox Muff it?

Penny-wise and pound-foolish.

That could well be the ultimate bottom line regarding the Boston Red Sox bailing out of the Roger Clemens Sweepstakes. It’s mystifying.

Throughout spring training Sox owner John Henry was repeatedly quoted as saying the team was committed to signing the ace righthander, who spent his most productive years with Boston.

But the New York Yankees had other ideas. Desperate for starting pitching, the Yankees outbid their century-old nemesis by some $10 million, albeit a pro-rated figure.

Yet one of the most persistent and ancient adages in baseball is that one can never have too much pitching.

Aging, Injured Hurlers Could Doom Red Sox

Two of the Red Sox starters – Curt Schilling and Tim Wakefield – are 40 years old. Schilling was all but useless for an entire season two years ago, while Wakefield was sidelined last season after cracking a couple of ribs. And 26-year-old Josh Beckett has been plagued by shoulder and blister problems in the past, and just came off the 15-day disabled list this week – where he’d been placed after developing a blister.

Even though Red Sox players and management are downplaying the loss of Clemens’ services – and there is a good possibility he might not be the messiah the Yankees are seeking – the pooh-poohing rings hollow.

"Would it have been nice to pitch with Roger Clemens?” posed a curt Schilling on his blog May 8. “Absolutely. Would he have helped us be a better team? I honestly don't know. Julian [Tavarez] has held his own in the 5th spot and we got a young left hander [Jon Lester, who was struck with cancer last season] that went 7-2 last year in the big leagues that's chomping at the bit to get back here.”

Schilling’s immediate reaction to Clemens’ May 6 announcement was more blunt. "It would have been nice to have him, we didn't need him -- we don't need him," a curt Schilling said. "I could care less now. What is done is done."

Beckett didn’t seem concerned either. "We're doing OK right now, don't you think?" he opined. As of May 31, the Sox are 36-16, and sport the best record in the American League. They hold a 13-1/2-game lead over the Yankees (22-29), who are tied for last place in the American League East.

"They need him more than we do," noted Sox designated hitter David Ortiz. Undoubtedly.

But the Sox pulled one of their patented el foldos in 2006, caving to the hated Bronx Bombers in August after leading the division all year.

So, in spite of their impressive start, oft-burned Sox fans are well justified to harbor their doubts.

Sure Clemens will turn 45 in August. Sure he only averaged six inning stints last season. Sure he’s re-entering the strong American League East, a far cry from the National League Central. Sure his outings last season became less effective as he faced batters for the second and third times in any given game. Sure his split fingered fastball isn’t what it was once.

But – he’s still Roger Clemens, perhaps the greatest pitcher of his generation. And certainly the addition of the Rocket to the Red Sox rotation would have been a positive as opposed to a negative.

Yankees Seeking a Savior

Meanwhile, after three up-and-down minor league outings, the Yankees say Clemens is tuned up and ready for service. So he’ll pitch Monday night against the Chicago White Sox. Yankees manager Joe Torre opted to maintain the part of his current starting rotation slated to throw against the Red Sox at Fenway Park over the first weekend in June. Instead, he’ll stick with Chien-Ming Wang, Mike Mussina and Andy Pettitte.

"I'm not disappointed that he's not pitching at Fenway," Torre said. "I don't think that series needs any more hype than it gets every time we play it, whether it's in Fenway or at the Stadium. You'd obviously be tempted if you had a kid pitching and you can replace him with Roger Clemens. When you have Wang, Moose and Andy, there's really not the temptation to do that."

Once Clemens and Torre conferred via e-mail Thursday, the manager announced his decision. "Monday is good with him," Torre told the New York media. "We're looking forward to seeing him."

According to Clemens, he’s O.K. with Torre’s choice. "I said I felt fine and would do whatever he wants me to do and whatever he needs me to do," Clemens said. "We were looking at the rotation and I realized that they looked like they're lined up pretty good for Boston."

As long as he joins the New York roster Monday Clemens will earn more than $18 million for his abbreviated season.

Boston Missed the Boat

After making their low-ball bid, Sox brass allegedly believed that Clemens was “days away” from making a final decision concerning where he’d play this year. There were only three teams in the running: New York, Boston and Houston, where the veteran fireballer had spent the past three seasons. (The ‘Stros really got the short end of the stick. They hadn’t spoken with Clemens’ agent, Randy Hendricks, for months. "It was a bit of a surprise," Tim Purpura, Houston's GM, said May 6. "We hadn't had any dialogue since the end of spring training.")

Of course, Clemens may still be suffering from the sting of how he left the Red Sox in the first place – after then-general manager Dan Duquette charged that he was “in the twilight of his career.” That was 156 wins ago.

Sox ace Schilling downplayed losing the seven-time Cy Young Award winner. “I am sure his signing was a pretty nice lift for them given the decimating injuries they've gone through to this point but I felt before the season, and even more so now, that this team [the Red Sox] is built to win a World Series as it's comprised right now," he said. "We have the pieces, we have the chemistry and to this point we've had our health. If we stay somewhat healthy through the year then our fate will be totally on us. We don't need anyone else to 'get us over the hump' or make that late push. This roster right now can win a World Series, but it's going to fall on the players to make that happen."

Certainly that shot at another World Series title would have been much stronger with Clemens more so than without him. The Red Sox bullpen is not the Yankees’ bullpen. The Yankee long relievers are on track to make 80 appearances each this season. But Rajah would also have to vie for attention with Schilling (5-2), Beckett (8-0) and Matsuzaka (the $103 million man, 7-3). He’s not one who relishes sharing the spotlight.

After agreeing to terms with the Yankees Hendricks told the Associated Press that the Red Sox seemed a bit lukewarm when he met with them in early May. “Their words and the meeting was terrific,” Hendricks said. “They wanted him later than our schedule. I think they would have liked him but didn’t think that they needed him. I would say they didn’t feel the need but had the desire.”

Despite Clemens’ hot and cold minor league outings the jury’s still out. Only time will tell if the Sox prove shortsighted in the matter.

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