Clemens’ latest Hall of Fame rejection reignited the long-standing divide in Red Sox Nation, where admiration for his early brilliance collides with resentment over his controversial second act.
Make no mistake about it, Red Sox fans have an extremely complicated relationship with retired starting pitcher Roger Clemens.
Most members of a certain age in Red Sox Nation absolutely despise him.
Not only did he leave Boston for a division rival in Toronto after the 1996 season, he then went on to become the ace of the Yankees’ staff on the tail end of their 1990s dynasty teams, winning two World Series in pinstripes in 1999 and 2000.
As Clemens’ talents declined into the 90s, he immediately became the best pitcher in the American League during his two seasons in Toronto, winning the AL Pitching Triple Crown in both 1997 and 1998. That led to consecutive Cy Young Awards before two more later in his career - one with the Yankees in 2001 and one with the Astros in 2004.
There’s all sorts of reporting to suggest that Clemens’ second-half rebirth as a pitcher was due to chemical enhancements thanks to the use of PEDs and steroids. And while the Red Sox Hall of Famer has never publicly admitted to any wrongdoing in that regard, the court of public opinion has made up their mind.
“Not only is he a cheater, but he was a cheater that helped out our rivals!”
Jul 28, 2022; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Radio personality, Joe Castiglione is handed a shirt by former Red Sox pitcher Roger Clemens during a ceremony honoring him after 40 years as the voice of the Boston Red Sox before the start of the game against the Cleveland Guardians at Fenway Park. (David Butler II/Imagn Images)All of that is completely valid.
With that said, there’s a subsection of Red Sox Nation that looks back at the good times with Clemens, saying that at his peak, only Pedro Martinez in 1999 was more talented in a Red Sox uniform. They point to his back-to-back Cy Young seasons in 1986 and 1987, and reminisce glowingly about his 20-strikeout game against the Mariners at age 23. From what I’ve been told by old timers and Gen Xers alike, to watch young Clemens was to watch a one-of-kind talent, capable of taking over in a way few have ever been able to in the sport of baseball.
They love that Clemens has taken to the Red Sox as his post-playing career home. They love that he’s in the team Hall of Fame, and get fired up when he joins the WEEI radio booth for an inning or two a season as a guest when he’s in town. He may have left in the late 90s for a chemically enhanced second act across the majors, but that’s OK.
2004 happened. Almost everything from yesteryear is forgiven.
With both ends of the Clemens spectrum always at play, the reaction to him missing the National Baseball Hall of Fame on his 12th attempt on Sunday night was mixed, to say the least.
Here’s a sampling of how Baseball Twitter reacted:
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Tom Carroll is a contributor for Roundtable, with boots-on-the-ground coverage of all things Boston sports. He's a senior digital content producer for WEEI.com, and a native of Lincoln, RI.