This Day in Baseball History
2007 - Clemens denies PED allegations
Seven-time Cy Young winner and former New York Yankees pitcher Roger Clemens denies allegations included in the Mitchell Report that he used performance-enhancing drugs during his career.
The league-mandated report proves damning for several star players, most notably Clemens. The pitcher's former trainer, Brian McNamee, says he injected Clemens with steroids in 1998 and human growth hormone in 2000 and 2001. MLB didn't ban the drugs until 2002 and 2005, respectively.
"I want to state clearly and without qualification: I did not take steroids, human growth hormone or any other banned substances at any time in my baseball career or, in fact, my entire life," Clemens said in a statement issued through his agent, Randy Hendricks. "Those substances represent a dangerous and destructive shortcut that no athlete should ever take."
After spending 13 seasons with the Boston Red Sox, Clemens' career caught a second wind when he arrived in Toronto for the 1997 campaign. The right-hander won back-to-back Cy Young awards during his two years with the Blue Jays, before throwing 200 innings in five of the next seven seasons and capturing two more Cy Youngs, one each with the New York Yankees and the Houston Astros.
Birthdays
1886 - Ty Cobb
1955 - Jim Clancy
1981 - Jeremy Accardo
1986 - Chris Carter