woodbuck27
07-06-2006, 09:43 PM
Clemens, Favre; headed for disaster or bound for glory
By Matt DeWalt / weatherforddemocrat.com
Roger Clemens has returned to the Houston Astros for the 2006 Major League Baseball season and has picked up two losses in his first two starts. The losses are no fault of Clemens, as once again the Astros are failing to provide run support when he is on the mound. This was the case against the Detroit Tigers in a 4-0 Houston loss on the road last Tuesday night. Clemens allowed two runs, one of which was earned in 6 1/3 innings, but his team couldn’t even muster a run.
Clemens returned to the Astros because he gets to play in his hometown and he gets to be in an organization that adores him. It also helps that his son, Koby, is a member of the Houston minor league system. That had to have some impact on his decision to return this season as a member of the Astros rather than joining a run scoring team like the Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees or even the Texas Rangers.
If Clemens comes out and has a stellar year that sees him win 10 or 12 games over the remainder of the season, while leading the Astros back to the postseason and possibly another World Series, everyone will say how dominant he is not only as a pitcher, but a 40-something pitcher at that. Should Clemens fail to lead Houston to the postseason, the talk will be that he was too old and that he couldn’t perform at the big league level.
Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre will be in much the same situation this season when he returns to the helm as the leader of the Pack. If he can somehow guide his team, which was held together last year with band-aides and some duct-tape, he will be praised as a hero. However, should his team finish at or near its 4-12 record of last season, he too will have been too old.
How do you tell a player like Clemens or Favre to walk away from the game they have loved and played their entire lives? As a sports fan, why would you want to see these giants of their respective sports leave the game? I have grown up watching Clemens and Favre and I was crushed with the thought of their retirements. Clemens has had some tough luck at the start of his season and surely Favre will have some struggles this season as well, but instead of watching and waiting for either Clemens or Favre, two shoe-in Hall of Fame players, to do something to tarnish their storied careers, we should relish the fact that we get to watch them compete for another year.
Yes, the sports of baseball and football have evolved and players who are bigger, faster and stronger are coming along to take over, but you cannot replace the fire, intensity and passion that these two players have brought to their respective games.
You can bet, every time a game is on that Clemens is pitching or Favre is leading a fourth quarter drive, people who love and hate these players will tune in to see what happens. More often than not, it is something amazing that would be a shame to miss. Aside from the Miami Heat’s Dwyane Wade, I don’t know if there is any player who has that much affect on their respective sport, and who knows how long it will be until we see it again.
By Matt DeWalt / weatherforddemocrat.com
Roger Clemens has returned to the Houston Astros for the 2006 Major League Baseball season and has picked up two losses in his first two starts. The losses are no fault of Clemens, as once again the Astros are failing to provide run support when he is on the mound. This was the case against the Detroit Tigers in a 4-0 Houston loss on the road last Tuesday night. Clemens allowed two runs, one of which was earned in 6 1/3 innings, but his team couldn’t even muster a run.
Clemens returned to the Astros because he gets to play in his hometown and he gets to be in an organization that adores him. It also helps that his son, Koby, is a member of the Houston minor league system. That had to have some impact on his decision to return this season as a member of the Astros rather than joining a run scoring team like the Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees or even the Texas Rangers.
If Clemens comes out and has a stellar year that sees him win 10 or 12 games over the remainder of the season, while leading the Astros back to the postseason and possibly another World Series, everyone will say how dominant he is not only as a pitcher, but a 40-something pitcher at that. Should Clemens fail to lead Houston to the postseason, the talk will be that he was too old and that he couldn’t perform at the big league level.
Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre will be in much the same situation this season when he returns to the helm as the leader of the Pack. If he can somehow guide his team, which was held together last year with band-aides and some duct-tape, he will be praised as a hero. However, should his team finish at or near its 4-12 record of last season, he too will have been too old.
How do you tell a player like Clemens or Favre to walk away from the game they have loved and played their entire lives? As a sports fan, why would you want to see these giants of their respective sports leave the game? I have grown up watching Clemens and Favre and I was crushed with the thought of their retirements. Clemens has had some tough luck at the start of his season and surely Favre will have some struggles this season as well, but instead of watching and waiting for either Clemens or Favre, two shoe-in Hall of Fame players, to do something to tarnish their storied careers, we should relish the fact that we get to watch them compete for another year.
Yes, the sports of baseball and football have evolved and players who are bigger, faster and stronger are coming along to take over, but you cannot replace the fire, intensity and passion that these two players have brought to their respective games.
You can bet, every time a game is on that Clemens is pitching or Favre is leading a fourth quarter drive, people who love and hate these players will tune in to see what happens. More often than not, it is something amazing that would be a shame to miss. Aside from the Miami Heat’s Dwyane Wade, I don’t know if there is any player who has that much affect on their respective sport, and who knows how long it will be until we see it again.