Clemens Gives Yankees Hope After Defeating Pirates

Jun 09, 08:50 PM

Current Headlines: NEW YORK _ The last pitch Roger Clemens threw Saturday was an 84 mph splitter that Ryan Doumit swung at and missed to end the sixth inning. Clemens began walking toward the Yankees' dugout while everyone in the sellout crowd popped to their feet to celebrate his successful return to pinstripes.

Elton John's "Rocket Man" streamed through the Stadium speakers and the fans were cheering loudly, but Clemens did not look up. He trudged into the dugout and accepted some slaps from teammates as the din from the stands rose. The 54,296 souls watching the so-called "Rocket Relaunch" wanted a curtain call, but Clemens was not going to give it to them.

The Stadium has been home to so many dramatic moments and seemed primed for another Saturday. But for all the drama of Clemens' return announcement, in which he told a packed house he was coming back from the owner's box during the seventh-inning stretch May 6, his actual homecoming was only memorable because the 44-year-old got a victory and gave the Yankees reason for hope every fifth day.

He wasn't dominant against a weak National League team and that's probably why he refused to bask in any fan adulation. "I heard `em," Clemens said.

Clemens gave up three runs in six serviceable innings and departed with a one-run lead. The Yankees piled on five more runs to beat the Pirates, 9-3, on a day that Joe Torre said he hoped was "a start of something that will be very special."

"There was good energy here, as expected and the guys played well, so it was a good day all around," Clemens said. "Obviously, I was excited to be back. Each start now I expect to grow stronger."

The Yankees have won five straight _ extending their longest winning streak of the season _ and eight of 10, and are finally looking like a team worth nearly $200 million, though they are still two games under .500 and began the day 10{ games behind the Red Sox in the AL East.

Melky Cabrera robbed Pittsburgh's Ronny Paulino of a potential home run in the seventh inning, leaping to snare a long drive that may have cleared the center-field wall.

The Yankees stole five bases, drove in four runs with two outs and scored three unearned runs and the Pirates looked mostly awful.

"We're playing well right now and feeling good about ourselves," Torre said. "The players were really upbeat today _ part of that was Roger and the rest was how we're feeling about ourselves."

The 44-year-old Clemens, who originally was supposed to make his debut last Monday but was scratched with what he called "a fatigued groin," struck out seven and walked two. He allowed five hits and also threw a wild pitch, tossing 108 pitches, 69 for strikes.

"I think it's going to get better, cleaner for him, depending on his physical ability to do things," Torre said. "We probably weren't going to see him at the top of his game the first time or maybe the first few times. As long as he comes out of it physically OK, then you shrug your shoulders and look forward to next time."

Five of Clemens' seven strikeouts came on split-fingered fastballs or two-seamers that were generally clocked in the mid-80s. The other two strikeouts came on 91 mile-per-hour fastballs, which is about where Clemens' heater was all day.

As soon as he wound up and delivered his first pitch, Clemens began earning the roughly $17 million he'll make this season. Clemens' first offering was bunted foul down the first-base line by Jose Bautista and Bautista nearly had a homer on a 2-2 pitch when his liner hit the fence about a foot to the foul side of the line painted up the wall to the foul pole. On a 3-2 pitch, Bautista singled through the right side of the infield.

Clemens retired the next two hitters, including last year's NL batting champ Freddy Sanchez, but Bautista reached second when Clemens threw a wild pitch. Adam LaRoche ripped Clemens' 16th pitch into center for an RBI single and the crowd got quiet. But Clemens threw a 91 mph fastball past Xavier Nady to end the inning.

The Yankees supplied him with a quick cushion, though, scoring three runs in the first. Johnny Damon led off with a single, Derek Jeter doubled and one out later Alex Rodriguez knocked in a run with a grounder. A second run scored on an error and Robinson Cano had an RBI single.

Clemens held the lead until the fourth, when he gave up a two-run double to Jack Wilson, which tied the score at 3. Torre said Clemens came back into the dugout saying, "Guys, my fault, my fault."

But Jorge Posada hit a sac fly in the fifth, which gave Clemens a 4-3 lead. Torre thought he might have to remove Clemens after five, but Clemens told pitching coach Ron Guidry he was feeling fresh enough to continue.

"I knew if my body held up I could give Joe 100-120 pitches," Clemens said. "My biggest hurdle was my legs. I don't want to go backward with that and I came out of it about like I expected."

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