Roger Singing the Blues?

In the latest whirlwind in the search for Danny Lin's real father....wait...check that....the Clemens/McNamee steroid/hgh/tattle-tale/he-said-he-said courtroom drama, lawyers for the ex-Clemen trainer said " 'all is fair game,' lawyers [...] say they intend to capitalize on allegations of an extra-marital affair involving Clemens and a country music singer in defending a defamation suit Clemens filed against McNamee." (quote from ESPN.com News Services).

That country music singer is none other than the famous, great, talented, Mindy McCready.

Who?

Get ready to take an Advil after you glance over this information, as listed in an article found on ESPN.com:

The New York Daily News, citing "several" unnamed sources, reported on its Web site Sunday night that Clemens and country singer Mindy McCready had a decade-long affair. Clemens' lawyer, Rusty Hardin, said Clemens and McCready had a friendship and nothing more.

"If true, it's just another example of Roger's pervasive prevarications which will be at the core of any defamation case," said McNamee's attorney, Richard Emery, in an e-mail to The Associated Press.

"He flatly denies having had any kind of an inappropriate relationship with her," Hardin said, according to the Daily News. "He's considered her a close family friend ... He has never had a sexual relationship with her."

"The issue in Roger's suit against McNamee is Roger's reputation and how it has been damaged," Emery said, according to the Daily News. "If it's proved that he's a philanderer, his reputation is already damaged. When you sue for defamation, you put your whole reputation in the community at issue. Anything is fair game, including his claim of sanctimonious purity. We would cross-examine him and other witnesses who might impact on his alleged behavior. We would probably subpoena her and witnesses who knew [of the relationship]. He's a 'family man' -- he implies that. It's about what his damages are. All is fair game."

McCready's lawyer, Lee Ofman, said he did not have any comment on the Daily News story, according to the Associated Press.

Since Clemens is filing a defamation suit against his former trainer, many believe that this might be the first of many skeletons that'll fall out of Clemens' back closet. McNamee's lawyers have a point; if you're going to sue our client for allegedly ruining your reputation, we should take a quick peak to see exactly what your reputation entails.

In other thoughts, who exactly is this Mindy McCready? Thanks to some hard hitting reporting over at Fox News, we quickly learned that McCready has had some legal issues of her own in the past. Here's an excerpt from a Fox News Article, dated July 26, 2007:

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Mindy McCready was in jail Thursday, accused of violating probation on a 2004 drug charge after a scuffle with her mother and authorities in Florida.

The 31-year-old country singer was taken into custody Wednesday at Nashville International Airport and booked into the Williamson County jail just south of Nashville.

She was arrested last week in Fort Myers, Fla., her hometown, on misdemeanor charges that she scratched her mother on the face during a scuffle and resisted sheriff's deputies.

Good Luck Roger!

Casualty of the Mitchell Report?

ESPN.com is reporting that the Baltimore Orioles have released outfielder Jay Gibbons, noting this move has nothing to do with his impending suspension due to his involvement with receiving a shipment of HGH (Human Growth Hormone).

Yep, and the Easter Bunny and Santa Clause both exist, Barry Bonds is the rightful Home Run King, and JFK was killed by only one shooter.

According to ESPN.com:

Gibbons batted .189 with no homers and four RBIs in 16 games this spring training after playing in only 84 games last season. Baltimore owes him $11.9 million for the next two seasons as part of a $21.1 million, four-year contract he agreed to in January 2006.

You don't think that the Orioles could have gotten something for him, even if it was a low level prospect or two? The Mets are badly in need of a healthy outfielder, and the Orioles could have taken advantage of that situation.

Time and time again this spring, we've seen the same old line of "Don't worry about his spring training numbers, they don't translate into regular season success/underperformance". Why would the Orioles be so quick to pull the trigger on Gibbons?

The AP broke the initial story, with team president Andy MacPhail leading the propaganda machine:

The team didn't see him getting much time as a reserve outfielder and left-handed designated hitter, and keeping the more versatile Scott Moore as a utility player made far more sense.

"The decision was essentially down to two players, and we made a baseball decision," said club president Andy MacPhail, who delivered the news to Gibbons.

"We laid it out pretty clearly," MacPhail said. "For you to be a productive player you need to play, and that opportunity just doesn't exist here absent some horrific injury. His words were, 'I agree completely.'"

Spencer Fordin, from MLB.com, writes:

Excising Gibbons from the roster means a little more of a clear substitution pattern for Trembley. Huff and Kevin Millar will rotate at first base and designated hitter, and Moore will pick up playing time from them and from third baseman Melvin Mora. Gibbons will likely end up elsewhere within the next few weeks, but his former teammates will keep him in mind.

"When you hear something like that, its always emotional," said Millar. "It's like one of your family members, [but] you understand where it's coming from. You understand when you look around at the roster and there's a lot of left-handed hitters. ... It was going to be tough for Jay to get at-bats, and obviously, it's been a dogfight for the last couple years for him."

Mitchell Report

I've been hearing a lot of grumblings lately, of people just looking for a simple list of the names on the Mitchell Report. ESPN has somewhat of a preliminary list, but it's missing some names (Mark McGwire, for instance). Here's a list courtesy of BaseballReference.com that lists, in alphabetical order, those named in the report:
And if you're interested in reading the entire report, enjoy.

Manny Alexander
Chad Allen
Rick Ankiel
David Bell
Mike Bell
Marvin Benard
Gary Bennett
Larry Bigbie
Barry Bonds
Ricky Bones
Kevin Brown
Paul Byrd
Alex Cabrera
Ken Caminiti
Jose Canseco
Mark Carreon
Jason Christiansen
Howie Clark
Roger Clemens
Paxton Crawford
Jack Cust
Brendan Donnelly
Chris Donnels
Lenny Dykstra
Bobby Estalella
Matt Franco
Ryan Franklin
Eric Gagne
Jason Giambi
Jeremy Giambi
Jay Gibbons
Troy Glaus
Juan Gonzalez
Jason Grimsley
Jose Guillen
Jerry Hairston
Matt Herges
Phil Hiatt
Glenallen Hill
Darren Holmes
Todd Hundley
Ryan Jorgensen
Mike Judd
David Justice
Chuck Knoblauch
Tim Laker
Mike Lansing
Paul Lo Duca
Nook Logan
Josias Manzanillo
Gary Matthews
Mark McGwire
Cody McKay
Kent Mercker
Bart Miadich
Hal Morris
Dan Naulty
Denny Neagle
Rafael Palmeiro
Jim Parque
Andy Pettitte
Adam Piatt
Todd Pratt
Stephen Randolph
Adam Riggs
Armando Rios
Brian Roberts
John Rocker
F.P. Santangelo
Benito Santiago
Scott Schoeneweis
David Segui
Gary Sheffield
Mike Stanton
Ricky Stone
Miguel Tejada
Derrick Turnbow
Ismael Valdes
Mo Vaughn
Randy Velarde
Ron Villone
Fernando Vina
Rondell White
Matt Williams
Todd Williams
Steve Woodard
Kevin Young
Gregg Zaun

All-Steroid Team

Usually, we might have titled this the season ending all-star team, a collection of the best athletes the majors had to offer this past season.
Not this year!
Here's a ster-studded cast of individuals that make up the 2007 All-Steroid Team, with their best season stats listed next to their names:

C Benito Santiago (1996; 30HR, 85 RBI, .264 BA)
1B Jason Giambi (2000; 43, 137, .333)
2B Brian Roberts (2005; 18, 73, .314)
SS Miguel Tejada (2004; 34, 150, .311)
3B Ken Caminiti (1996; 40, 130, .326)
OF Barry Bonds (2001; 73, 137, .328)
OF Gary Sheffield (1996; 42, 120, .314)
OF David Justice (93&00 - almost identical 40/41, 120/118, .270/.286)
DH Mo Vaughn (1996; 44, 143, .326)

SP Roger Clemens (1997; 21-7, 292 KO, 2.05 ERA)
CL Eric Gagne (2003; 55 SVs, 1.20 ERA)

Here's an interesting statistic too; almost every one of those players had their best season after either setting career lows the year before, or had injuries that severly hampered their production.
For example, lets take a look at Sheffield:
In 1995 Sheffield only plays in 63 games, hits 16 home runs and drives in 46 RBIs. Next season, he almost triples his stats from the year before. Sheffield doesn't reach those numbers again for another five seasons.
Need more proof? Clemens:
1996 he posts a 10-13 record, 3.63 era, and walks 106 batters. Clemens begins to hear those whisphers, and he signs with the Blue Jays the next season. Response? Twenty one wins, shaves a whole point off his era, and wins the Cy Young award.
Still not enough? Case #3, my favorite whipping boy; Barry Bonds:
Not even on the Nation's radar during the Big Mac/Sammy Sosa assault on Roger Maris' record in 1999, Bonds' home run totals begin to climb, rapidly; 34-49-73....during a career point that should have been focusing on hanging on for one more year....

The Joy and Sadness of Double Standards

I was talking to my girlfriend last night about something that's been bothering me lately. One of my favorite football players happens to be Shawne Merriman (OLB, Chargers). Don't ask me why, I just like him. Last season, Merriman was suspended for using steroids.
Didn't faze me in the least. Kept right on rooting for the man.
Now, Don Mattingly, my favorite baseball player of all time, forever and ever, has never been accused of taking steroids or growth hormone, or any other banned performance enhancing substance. The minute he does, I'll hate him for the rest of my life.
Done. Everything I own of Mattingly will be tarred, feathered, burned, ripped up, mailed back, and shot with a potato gun.
I wonder why that is.
Jayson Stark,ESPN, recently ran an article on the double standard that exists between the Barry Bonds case and the recent light that's been shed on Rick Ankiel.
I for one am guilty of what Stark outlines as "Double Standard #1; The Likeability Test".
In theory, a good journalist is supposed to leave his personal thoughts, beliefs, and opinions checked with his coat at the front door.
That is why I never got passed writing articles for the Quinnipiac University Student Chronicles.
I despise Barry Bonds and everything that he does, eats, watches, showers with, sleeps on, and mails his credit card bills to. There is not one single redeeming quality I can find in the man.
If he was to find a cure for the AIDS crisis, reverse global warming, wipe oil off a baby seal, develop a better mouse trap, and adopt a tribe of aborigines, I would scoff and chalk it up to a media publicity stunt.
Rick Ankiel could wipe out half of the rain forest, and I like many of my American counterparts, would smile and look in awe as he walks by, chainsaw in hand.
I can't figure it out.
Stark lists some possibilities for why this is plaguing me and scores of baseball fans throughout the country, and I think he may be onto something:
He wasn't even a hitter then.
It wasn't a banned substance then.
He had a doctor's prescription.
He was recovering from Tommy John surgery.
He needed it to heal.
He hasn't been accused of any "wrongdoing."
The media is out to get him.
It's not like he's Barry Bonds or something. (Stark; Exposing Our Dirty Double Standards)