The talk of spring training
VERO BEACH, Fla. — Joe Torre spent much of his day talking about Roger Clemens. So did Lou Piniella, Joe Girardi and dozens of major leaguers from Florida to Phoenix.
Clemens' testimony on Capitol Hill was a hot topic Wednesday as several teams opened spring training. Questioned under oath by Congress, the seven-time Cy Young Award winner again denied using steroids or human growth hormone in a tension-filled spectacle that overshadowed the start of the 2008 season.
"It's just sad," Torre said on the eve of his first camp as manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers. "I'd just like to see baseball move on right now."
In towns such as Winter Haven, Fla., and Mesa, Ariz., players watched closely on clubhouse televisions as the hearing in Washington dragged on for 4Z\x hours. But most big leaguers reserved judgment about who they thought was telling the truth, Clemens or his chief accuser, ex-trainer Brian McNamee.
"One of them is lying. I guess that will end up coming out. There were a lot of conflicting statements on both sides," Kansas City Royals pitcher John Bale said.
All three TV sets mounted on the walls in Kansas City's clubhouse in Surprise, Ariz., were tuned in to the congressional hearing. As many as 20 players at a time were watching and hanging on every word.
"Everyone is kind of wrapped up in it. I noticed that when I came in this morning, everybody was gathered around," Bale said. "It's pretty interesting. How it turns out, I don't know. I'm sure they'll get to the bottom of it eventually."
Other players weren't as interested.
"I've been working out so I haven't watched it," Cleveland pitcher Jake Westbrook said, glancing up at the screen. "I'm sure I'll see more of it later."
Chicago Cubs pitcher Ryan Dempster said he's much more concerned about his own team than he is about Clemens or McNamee.
"It's unfortunate, unfortunate for the fans of baseball to have to go through it all, but really personally I could care less," Dempster said.
Piniella, beginning his second season as manager of the Cubs, wants to focus on the field.
"I think you learn from the past but you just can't keep revisiting the past," he said. "I don't know who's done what. But I do know that the quicker that this problem gets cleaned up and rectified, the better for everybody. So we don't have to talk about it anymore. And it's unfortunate that we are talking about this. Here we are getting ready for the start of a new major league season and we're talking about things that happened five or six, seven years ago."
Clemens pitched for Torre with the New York Yankees from 1999-2003 and again last season.
"I know Roger, obviously. I know what kind of competitor he was when he played and played with me," Torre said at a Dodgertown news conference. "I really don't know what comment to make about what is or what isn't. I'm more tied to the individuals than about what's going on."
Andy Pettitte and Chuck Knoblauch, who also played for Torre in New York, have admitted using human growth hormone. The Mitchell Report said Yankees slugger Jason Giambi admitted using steroids.
"People are going to put it wherever they want to put it," Torre replied when asked if his legacy has been tainted. "It's obviously going to take a great deal of attention away from how good these players are, and as far as my legacy, that's for somebody else to decide."
