Rocket vs. B-Mac

Who’s the Real Backstabber?

When news first broke that Brian McNamee cooperated with the Feds and gave up information on a number of major leaguers, most notably Rogah Clemens, the prevailing opinion of him was that of a backstabbing rat. Peter Gammons even called him something amounting to that on ESPN. While the public condemnation of Clemens has been just as severe (assumed guilty), the prevailing opinion of him is that he could be lying about someone who has literally treated him like family. But when anyone (even an ardent Clemens fan like Mike Wallace or… Mike Wallace) takes a closer look, it becomes clear who the real backstabber of this broken friendship is.

Clemens and his legal team no doubt intended his 60 Minutes spot and next-day news conference to go a long way in placing reasonable doubt in the mind of the public. But instead it seems to have backfired. His answers to the softballs lobbed to him by Wallace came across as overly defensive, a sentiment that was slammed home by the negative body language of one of the most uncomfortable and intriguing news conferences in recent history. Rogah has already been caught in one significant lie (that he had no idea he would be named in the Mitchell Report) and has put forth the downright absurd claim that the Hall of Fame means nothing to him. (Oh really Rocket? What about that silly controversy about what hat you would be wearing years ago? Or how you considered retiring so your Mom would be able to make it to the ceremony?) Finally, listening to the 17 minute phone conversation brought up many new questions and suspicions.

It is pretty clear that Clemens knows that the call is being recorded and McNamee does not. Clemens makes a big show of professing compassion for McNamee’s sick son and overburdened family. I do not think McNamee knew it was being recorded, as he swears a bit more and generally comes across as a little more pathetic than someone would if they knew the tapes were rolling. Throughout the conversation, he pleads with Clemens, asking “What do you want me to do?”. This would seem to be the perfect opportunity to say “stop lying you snake son of a bitch” instead of “I just need someone to tell the truth.” I was hit hard by memories of The Godfather when the informant shuts up and kills himself in order to ensure his family is protected and his honor is not lost. You can just tell that McNamee is literally sick over this. He never wanted to give up Clemens and the fact that he had no choice is eating him from the inside out. But he never recants his story or says that he is being untruthful throughout the entire conversation. Instead, he offers to go to jail for his friend, who is simply using him (and his sick son) as a tool to try to clear his name.

Finally, the simple fact remained that McNamee HAD ABSOLUTELY NO REASON TO LIE! I know many people have not sat down with the light bedtime reading material that is The Mitchell Report, but I strongly recommend at least checking out the specific part about Clemens. (Found here: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/baseball/mlb/12/13/mitchellreport.rogerclemens/index.html ) This makes it painfully clear that McNamee is only going to avoid jail time by telling the truth! If he lies in any way he’s in even more trouble than he started in. He has already given up Andy Pettitte, a big name (who has also said what McNamee said is true) and it is impossible to believe that anyone in their right mind would implicate a huge name such as Clemens if they were lying. The scrutiny would be so severe that it would never hold up.

Eventually, the truth will come out and people will make their own judgments. McNamee’s lawyer has recently come forward with the news that there is another tape, this one of a conversation his client had with Clemen’s representation before the report came out. Right now it looks like it will be a showdown in Congress, with one person setting themselves up for some serious perjury charges. Let’s watch and remember where we were when America’s national pastime’s biggest stars lost what little credibility they had left.

This post was written with the help of B-12 only.