Associated Press Photo | ||
Because the ptching strapped Yankees' vision of Roger Clemens being money in the bank is going to put, well, tons of money in the bank for the ever-mercenary Clemens.
Clemens' prorated $28 million, one-year contract announced today by the Yankees shows that, and more.
Cloak this latest return in all the sentimental glop you want. you know: Roger loves Joe Torre, Roger misses Andy Pettitte, Roger needed one more opportunity to plant a big, wet juicy kiss on Babe Ruth's likeness out there in the Yankee Stadium monuments.
Choked up, yet?
Truth is, what Roger Clemens missed was George Steinbrenner, or, more precisely, his ... money.
Getting the lettuce is one thing. Priming the pump with the deftness of a Clemens is another.
Clemens has always played the supply and demand game, and he's got a Hall of Famer's touch, a true great, because he's arguably better at extracting dough from hungry contenders than any player in the history of baseball.
Others may marvel at the brashness of Clemens' annual spring sale which allows him to skip niggling little details such as spring training, long bus rides across Florida or Arizona before or after exhibition games, April snow or bone-chilling rain.
No other Major League player has mastered this art, to be sure. Clemens? These performances are nothing short of Rocket science.
