Clemens and McCready: Do you think he injected her in the ass with steroids?

By Michael J.W. Stickings

I'm no Bill Simmons, but both as a Jays fan and as a baseball lover, not to mention as a human being, I despise Roger Clemens. His record may show him as one of the greatest pitchers of all time, but, well, his record, not to mention his character, is tainted. And so, when he finds himself in trouble, whether it involves steroids or sex with an underage girl, I experience deep, profound Schadenfreude.

Many of you, I'm sure, know about the steroids issue. Did he or didn't he? Well, he probably did. (For more, see my post on his ridicule-worthy appearance before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform a couple of months ago.) Seven Cy Youngs, zero credibility. That's pretty much where he stands now -- in terms of baseball history, his reputation, and the law.

But don't put your Schadenfreude away just yet. There's more -- and it's juicy. Here's the Daily News:

Roger Clemens carried on a decade-long affair with country star Mindy McCready, a romance that began when McCready was a 15-year-old aspiring singer performing in a karaoke bar and Clemens was a 28-year-old Red Sox ace and married father of two, several sources have told the Daily News.

Now, look, what two consenting adults do, well, that's their business (most of the time -- there are exceptions, of course). But, in this case, McCready was 15 years old.

Marcus Dixon, a good and decent young man, gets sent to prison in Georgia for statutory rape and child molestation for having consensual sex with a 15-year old -- but he was 18 at the time (and, in the end, he was freed following a favourable ruling by the Georgia Supreme Court and the law that put him in prison was changed).

So if this is true about Clemens -- and, of course, he is denying it (she's just "a close family friend," according to his lawyer) -- then what?

(For more, see ESPN, Yahoo's Big League Stew, as well as loads of reaction over at Ballbug.)

**********

And poor Mindy McCready, who has been through a rough time of it in recent years, falling from the top of the country charts into drug use, various brushes with the law (including DUI, fraud, identity theft, and unlawful imprisonment), a suicide attempt, probation violation, resisting arrest, and jail time (she was released in December).

She is now, apparently, attempting a comeback. And, well, good luck with that.

As for me and my Schadenfreude, we're just looking forward to what she has to say about her relationship with Clemens. And to how this sordid story will play out.