This has been bugging me for quite some time. On the one hand, it’s almost blasphemous to talk negatively about one of the greatest pitchers of all time, Roger Clemens. On the other hand, with the Astros narrowing the division lead late in the season to a game and half behind the Cards, you have to wonder whether Clemens late comeback cost the Astros a playoff spot.
John Beamer at the Hardball Times tackled this task and it’s probably the most well thought analysis of the subject. He concludes that there’s a less then significant chance that Clemens would have pushed the Astros into the playoffs had he pitched in April but it’s how he got there that’s particularly interesting.
