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Scandal Plagued Baseball Star Gets White House Backing

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Donald Trump
By Gage Skidmore via Flicker

President Donald Trump is once again pushing Major League Baseball to grant former New York Yankees pitcher Roger Clemens a spot in the Hall of Fame.

According to the president the seven-time Cy Young Award winner belongs there without delay, despite his past scandals.

Trump praised Clemens’ career achievements and dismissed the allegations of steroid use that have dogged the pitcher for years.

“I hope that Major League Baseball is getting ready to put Roger Clemens in the Hall of Fame, a place where he has belonged for many years!” he began.

“354 Wins, second in Total Strike Outs, Low Earned Run Average, played in 6 World Series, 7 Cy Young Awards (A Record, by 3!), and was, during much of his career, unhittable,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

“Never took drugs, there is no proof that he took drugs, has steadfastly refused that he took drugs,” Trump said about Clemens’ alleged steroid use.

“Frankly, I think he has a major lawsuit against Baseball. If it were me, I’d sue them.”

Trump linked Clemens’ situation to that of Pete Rose, baseball’s all-time hits leader, who was barred from the Hall of Fame for decades due to his lifetime ban for gambling.

Only after Rose’s death last year did MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred reinstate him.

“PUT ROGER CLEMENS IN THE HALL OF FAME, NOW — NOT LIKE YOU DID WITH PETE ROSE, WHEN YOU WAITED UNTIL HE WAS DEAD!” Trump demanded.

The president also claimed he had reached a deal with Manfred to make Rose eligible before his death, but the promise was not kept.

“That wasn’t the deal I made with the Commissioner, Rob Manfred, many months before he died,” Trump wrote.

“The deal was that he was going to be put up, immediately, but they waited and waited and waited, and then, put him up because of ‘death.’”

“It shouldn’t have been because of death, it should have been because of TALENT!” Trump asserted. “This is not going to happen with Roger Clemens.”

Clemens’ career totals include 354 wins and 4,672 strikeouts, ranking him third all-time.

But his otherwise automatic Hall of Fame credentials have been tainted since his name appeared in the 2007 Mitchell Report, an investigation led by former Democrat Senator George J. Mitchell into steroid and human growth hormone use in baseball.

In 2008, Clemens testified before Congress to deny the allegations.

That testimony led to an indictment charging him with obstruction, making false statements, and perjury. Four years later, he was acquitted on all counts.

Despite the acquittal, Clemens never received more than 65 percent of the vote during his 10 years on the Hall of Fame ballot.

His eligibility window closed in 2022, leaving his fate to special committees.

Even with that record, some still argue the evidence against him is strong. Jeff Novitzky, a lead investigator in the BALCO steroid scandal, has maintained Clemens used performance-enhancing drugs.

“We had DNA evidence in the Clemens case, with Clemens’ DNA and an anabolic steroid within a needle that was used to inject him,” Novitzky claimed.

Trump rejected that narrative during his latest Truth Social posts. He said Clemens has long been the target of baseless rumors.

“I played Golf yesterday with the Great Roger Clemens and his son, Kacy. Roger Clemens was easily one of the few Greatest Pitchers of All Time, winning 354 Games, the Cy Young Award seven times (A Record, by a lot!), and played in six World Series, winning two!” Trump wrote days before is latest push for Clemens.

“He was second to Nolan Ryan in most strikeouts, and he should be in the Baseball Hall of Fame, NOW!” Trump continued.

“People think he took drugs, but nothing was proven,” he echoed. “He never tested positive, and Roger, from the very beginning, totally denies it. He was just as great before those erroneous charges were leveled at him.”

“That rumor has gone on for years, and there has been no evidence whatsoever that he was a ‘druggie.’”

The president again compared the treatment of Clemens to that of Pete Rose, insisting he would not allow history to repeat itself.

“This is going to be like Pete Rose where, after over 4,000 Hits, they wouldn’t put him in the Hall of Fame until I spoke to the Commissioner, and he promised to do so, but it was essentially a promise not kept because he only ‘opened it up’ when Pete died and, even then, he said that Pete Rose only got into the mix because of DEATH,” Trump argued.

“We are not going to let that happen in the case of Roger Clemens. 354 Wins — Put him in NOW,” Trump urged.

“He and his great family should not be forced to endure this ‘stupidity’ any longer!”

For his part, Clemens welcomed the backing from the president.

“I appreciate the love!” Clemens wrote on X. “DT knows more than anyone the fake news that’s out there.”

“Everyone has their agendas… I played the game to change my family’s direction generationally and to WIN,” he added.

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