"Rocket" Roger Clemens is preparing to join an exclusive club of professional athlete.
No, not the special type of athlete that waves off the effects of aging to continue to compete in sports at the professional level. No, he's not trying to make a final push to get into the Hall Of Fame.
Clemens is joining a league of extraordinary gentlemen formed by charter member Brett Favre, with Mark Martin as VP.
That class of athlete that doesn't know when to quit. The class of athlete that is oblivious to, or blissfully ignorant of, the idea that they can do no more to elevate themselves as icons of their given sports. All they stand to gain is sullying the records and statistics attained over their careers that make them the HOF candidate icons of their sports that they are. They stand to lose more than they stand to gain by hanging around so long. You're not going to perform on the same level at age 50 as you did at age 30, and you're certainly not going to be better 20 years later... so all that's left is to muddy up records and stats.
But it's not just about career stats and legend, either. It's about the fans. The fans that you become heroes to and buy the tickets and souvenirs and memorabilia that afford you the luxuries you have. Fans. FAN(ATIC)S. The people that don't just become attached, sometimes emotionally, to a sport or a team, but a specific athlete. The fans that are so attached that when their heroes of sport decide to retire, mourn the moment as if losing a family member. Those same fans have that emotion cheapened every time that hero says he's retiring, then shows up a year later wanting back in. Then plays for another year, and retires. And a year later, wants back in.
Just go, Roger. Please. What you're doing is pure hubris. You have nothing to gain but a paycheck, and everything to lose. Be a hero, be a legend, and stay retired. Be a leader. Set an example to future HOF'ers of any sport. Stand behind your word. You said you were retiring from the game of baseball, so stand behind your word. Just. Stay. Retired.
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