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Roger Clemens won seven Cy Young Awards and pitched for New York Yankees teams that won back-to-back World Series titles. But Clemens’ career was ultimately defined by baseball’s steroid era.
Clemens last pitched in a Major League Baseball (MLB) game in 2007 during his second stint with the Yankees. By 2008, he found himself embroiled in a federal investigation into the suspected use of performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) by several prominent major league players.
Clemens testified before Congress that he did not take PEDs and was acquitted of the federal charge of lying to Congress. Clemens is now one of eight Baseball Hall of Fame nominees selected by the Contemporary Baseball Era Players Committee.
President Donald Trump has made it clear that he believes Clemens should be in Cooperstown.
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President Donald Trump arrives at Yankee Stadium for a game between the New York Yankees and the Detroit Tigers, Sept. 11. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
On the eve of the announcement of the newest list of inductees, Trump took to Truth Social to effectively reject accusations of Clemens’ previous steroid use. “The only reason he is not (in the Hall of Fame) is because of rumors and innuendo, which were not proven,” Trump wrote.
Trump also pointed to Clemens’ nickname, “The Rocket,” saying “he earned” the moniker “very early in his career because of his blazing fastball, was just as dominant before those erroneous allegations were leveled against him. I sincerely hope that the Committee uses its great judgment (Roger’s opponents never proved a thing against him, and he may have the best pitching record, all told, in the History of Baseball!), and the Baseball Commissioner has the Strength, Wisdom, and Power to do the right thing, and put Roger Clemens in The Baseball Hall of Fame, IMMEDIATELY!”
ROGER CLEMENS THANKS TRUMP FOR BASEBALL HALL OF FAME SUPPORT, HITS BACK AT CRITICS
Neither the MLB commissioner’s office nor the White House immediately responded to Fox News Digital’s requests for comment.
The Contemporary Baseball Era Players Committee considers retired players whose eligibility to make it to Cooperstown via a majority vote from the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (BBWAA) has expired. The writers’ association is responsible for selecting recently retired players.
Roger Clemens throws a pitch during Game 2 of the World Series at Yankee Stadium in New York, Oct. 22, 2000. (Robert Deutsch/USA TODAY/USA TODAY NETWORK)
Clemens’ last chance to be listed on the BBWAA Hall of Fame ballot was in 2022; that year he received just over 65% of the vote. Players must receive at least 75% of the vote to become enshrined in Cooperstown.
Power-hitting outfielder Barry Bonds, whose historic career was also tainted by accusations of PED use, is being considered this year by the committee. Bonds also avoided criminal charges in a steroid probe. He has previously stated he never knowingly used any banned substances.
Former Houston Astros pitcher Roger Clemens tosses a ball before the game between the Astros and the Tampa Bay Rays at Minute Maid Park, Aug. 2, 2024, in Houston. (Troy Taormina/USA TODAY Sports)
Clemens and Bonds were two of the high-profile names listed in the Mitchell Report in 2007.
The report was authored by former U.S. Sen. George Mitchell, R-Maine, who conducted a monthslong probe into the suspected use of human growth hormone and anabolic steroids.
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Trump has previously voiced support for Clemens’ Hall of Fame hopes. After Trump wrote in a social media post that there was “no evidence” the retired pitcher was a steroid user, Clemens thanked the president for his support.
“I appreciate the love! DT knows more than anyone the fake news that’s out there,” Clemens wrote on X in August. “Everyone has their agendas… I played the game to change my family’s direction generationally and to WIN!”
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