Roger Clemens is partially agnostic and partially defiant in reaction to the news that baseball writers did not elect him to the Hall of Fame in his final year on the ballot.
He said he put Cooperstown in his “rear-view” a decade ago, and that he is comfortable he played the game the “right way.”
“I figured I’d give y’all a statement since it’s that time of the year again,” Clemens tweeted. “My family and I put the HOF in the rear view mirror ten years ago. I didn’t play baseball to get into the HOF. I played to make a generational difference in the lives of my family…”
“… Then focus on winning championships while giving back to my community and the fans as well. It was my passion. I gave it all I had, the right way, for my family and for the fans who supported me. I am grateful for that support. I would like to thank those who took the time to look at the facts and vote for me. Hopefully everyone can now close this book and keep their eyes forward focusing on what is really important in life. All love!”
Clemens received 65.2 percent of the vote while Barry Bonds received 66 percent. A player needs to be named on at least 75 percent of ballots to be inducted into the Hall.
Both were all-time great players who were kept out of the Hall due to being linked to performance-enhancing drugs, charges which neither of them have ever admitted were true.
Clemens, who pitched for the Red Sox, Blue Jays, Yankees and Astros, was a seven-time Cy Young winner and two-time World Series champion. He won the 1986 AL MVP in a season in which he went 24-4 with a 2.48 ERA.
It is still possible for Bonds and Clemens to get into Cooperstown via the Today’s Game ballot, and we’ll find out in December if they’ve made it on there.