Clemens sick?

[bottlerocket]

Do you guys really think Clemens was sick or excuse not to pitch him. He was going on 3 days rest and they were playing the Rockies. It is just funny how it all workout. I wonder if the Stros knew something we didn't know.

P.S.

Braves Sux!

[codell]

He wasn't sick.

He's just a germaphobe.

[Blatz]

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/sports/bb/2829174

With Clemens receiving intravenous fluids in the trainer's room Sunday morning, Hickey marched over to Backe with the news he was starting.

"I just said, 'Really?' " Backe said after holding the Rockies to two runs over five-plus innings for the victory. "He said, 'Yeah.' I immediately found Clemens and just wanted to see what was wrong with him and see how he's doing. He just told me, 'Go out there and just do what you've been able to do. Everything will just fall in place.' It was good advice to hear someone like that say it for a ballgame this important."

I didn't think he was sick when I first heard it but would they really give him an IV just to cover up a lie.

[edc]

He was sick. He went home before/during the game. If it were fake, he would've been around (but well away from the bubbly) and talked to the media during the celebration.

[redgoose]

I believe he was sick. Everyone said he looked green. But i don't see how he will be 100% by Wednesday. It usually takes me a week to get over flu like symtems similiar to what they reported he had. But then again, i'm never hooked up to an IV and have a medical staff by my side when i get the cold.

[Preston27]

I think he was sick, why would we have rested him when the wild card was on the line?

[Groogrux]

Originally posted by GriffinFan
I think he was sick, why would we have rested him when the wild card was on the line?

To have him completely rested for a possible playoff game or the probable game 1 of the NLDS.

[Alimoe84]

I honestly don't think he was sick. I had complete faith that the Astros were going to win against the Rockies Sunday. They damn sure had too because A one game playoff with Carlos Hernandez or Tim Redding going would've been ugly. (Assuming Backe lost and Clemens was still sick.) I think that the Astros were so confident at home that they used this Clemens "illness" as a reason to save him for Game 1 because we all know Roger on 3 days didnt give us that 100% confidence.

[Behad]

I wonder...I read one report that said he caught it from his kids, and another report said he caught it from Redding.

[edc]

Originally posted by Behad
I wonder...I read one report that said he caught it from his kids, and another report said he caught it from Redding.

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/news/archive/2004/10/03/sports1334EDT0237.DTL

"We're confident it's one of those 12-hour viruses," Hunsicker said. "Two of his sons had it yesterday, and they're just getting over it. Certainly, he's got to be stronger tomorrow than he is today."

[Fegwu]

If you believe that Clemens was sick enough not to pitch in that game then I have a brigde in Queens New York I want to sell to you.

Sick Shmick.

Coach Garner did the right thing. Period.

[The Real Shady]

I heard he was battling a real bad case of diarrhea.

[DaDakota]

I have had it for the last 5 days, but hopefully he has a lessor version.

Of course there are those new drugs that stop the flu/cold in it's tracks if you take it in the first 48 hours of flu or cold symptoms.

DD

[Rockets10]

Originally posted by Fegwu
If you believe that Clemens was sick enough not to pitch in that game then I have a brigde in Queens New York I want to sell to you.

Sick Shmick.

Coach Garner did the right thing. Period.

I couldn't agree with you more. Clemens had no business pitching in that Rockies game and I think they didnt want to put too much pressure on Backe from the night before so they came up with the Clemens story. Y'all should have seen my face when I walked into the stadium on Sunday and realized Backe was pitching - I think this will explain it --> :D

[Fegwu]

Originally posted by Rockets10
I couldn't agree with you more. Clemens had no business pitching in that Rockies game and I think they didnt want to put too much pressure on Backe from the night before so they came up with the Clemens story. Y'all should have seen my face when I walked into the stadium on Sunday and realized Backe was pitching - I think this will explain it --> :D


I agree too. Jim Deshaie mentioned that point too. He said the same approach was used for Carlos Hernandez' first start I believe.

I really like what Garner is doing. It just feels like he can do not wrong. All or most of his moves so far has been golden and I have a gut feeling that this year we will break the winless playoff seris jinx. I am already very happy with how far we have gone so far. Everything else will be gravy for me.

I am so happy because we did not waste Clemens' comeback and also give us a slim to very good chance of resigning Beltran (but I do not know we should do about Tavares if that happens). I here (rumour from Steve Stone) the Scrubbies are /might go after Carlos Beltran if they do not resign Alou and Ramon;)

[redgoose]

I just don't buy this conspirecy.

First, we could have lost the game pitching with Backe, who's only good for around 5 or 6 innings of baseball. The Rockies are a good offensive team.

Then we'd of had to play a 1 game playoff with the Giants, who have had our number the past couple years. So if we even lost to Colorado and had to play the Giants, Clemens wouldn't be able to pitch untill the 3rd game of the playoffs, and that's assuming we could beat the Giants.

To me, that's just to big a risk to take playing the Giants in a 1 game playoff when you can seal the deal the last day of the season.

[Blatz]

Originally posted by Fegwu
If you believe that Clemens was sick enough not to pitch in that game then I have a brigde in Queens New York I want to sell to you.

Sick Shmick.

Coach Garner did the right thing. Period.

If he wasn't sick then why did they lie to the point where they put an IV on him? I just don't get it. If they didn't want to play him, fine but why lie.

[Rockets10]

Originally posted by redgoose
I just don't buy this conspirecy.

First, we could have lost the game pitching with Backe, who's only good for around 5 or 6 innings of baseball. The Rockies are a good offensive team.

Then we'd of had to play a 1 game playoff with the Giants, who have had our number the past couple years. So if we even lost to Colorado and had to play the Giants, Clemens wouldn't be able to pitch untill the 3rd game of the playoffs, and that's assuming we could beat the Giants.

To me, that's just to big a risk to take playing the Giants in a 1 game playoff when you can seal the deal the last day of the season.

You don't have to believe the conspiracy, I question it myself at times, but you shouldn't question not starting Clemens against the Rockies.

Scenario 1:
Clemens pitches on Sunday and wins. He can't be used again until game 3 of the Braves series because there is no way that they pitch Oswalt And Clemens on three days rest to START the playoffs. As a result, you have a very fragile-minded Backe starting game 1 in Atlanta with immense pressure - very risky.

Scenario 2:
Clemens pitches Sunday and loses. You then have to pitch Backe in San Francisco in a one game playoff that would be very tough for the kid to deal with. If you happen to win (unlikely), you then either have to pitch Oswalt on short rest or go to Munro (b/c Backe is spent) to pitch Game 1. If you decide on Oswalt, you face the dilemma above with having to start your pitchers on short rest from the very beginning - not a good plan if you are planning to hang around awhile in the playoffs.

Scenario 3:
Backe pitches on Sunday and loses. You have Clemens going in San Francisco on regular rest, giving you a pretty good chance to win the game. However, you lose Clemens for the beginning of the Braves series as faced in the above scenarios.

Scenario 4:
Backe pitches on Sunday and wins. Clemens goes on regular rest (actually extra day) for game 1 and you have oswalt on regular rest for game 2, followed by Backe back in Houston for game 3 - much easier than pitching on the road.

My rankings --> 4>1>3>2

So, as I see it, it makes a lot more sense to give Backe a try and hope for the best because it sets you up perfectly for the playoffs. If he loses you have Clemens going in San Fran in a winnable game. However, if you pitch Clemens and he somehow loses you are absolutely screwed having to pitch backe in san fran - and even if Backe wins, you lose Clemens until game 3.

[JPM0016]

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/sports/2541511

By RICHARD JUSTICE
Copyright 2004 Houston Chronicle
Send questions to Chronicle columnist Richard Justice here

Question: Come on, was Roger Clemens really sick?
James in Abilene

Answer: Well, unless he's got some kind of makeup that makes him look green and unless those solutions they were pumping in his veins were fake, he was really sick.
Come to think of it, Drayton McLane looked worse than Clemens when Phil Garner gave him the news.

I love conspiracy theories as much as the next guy, but I don't think the Rocket would fake an illness. No one wants the ball in a big game more than this guy.

It just shows you what kind of run the Astros are on. Their No. 1 guy gets sick and it ends up leaving them in better shape than they were before. Some season, huh?

[meh]

Originally posted by redgoose
I just don't buy this conspirecy.

First, we could have lost the game pitching with Backe, who's only good for around 5 or 6 innings of baseball. The Rockies are a good offensive team.

...

Ok, stop here. The Rockies are a good HOME offensive team. Their offense sucks huge on the road, more than most teams. They scored only 337 runs on the road, good for a measly 14th place(only the Brewers and the Diamondbacks are worse) in the NL.

Whether or not Clemens are really ill, there's no question starting Backe on Sunday was the correct decision.

[DaDakota]

Get the man some Tamiflu and let him rest.

DD

[Raven Lunatic]

This is a little conspiratorial...but my opinion is that they knew from the beginning that they weren't going to run Clemens out there. The whoe charade was done solely to keep the young, and easily excitable Brandon Backe from having to think about the season potentially resting on his arm. The whole IV bit, and the coming to the game and leaving was for Backe's sake, so he wouldn't suspect. But maybe he really did get sick. We won't ever really know for sure.