Rocket's Red Glare..

The Houston Astros have announced that Roger Clemens will undergo an MRI test of his back today.
During Saturday’s game against the Pittsburgh Pirates Clemens says he felt a "twinge" in his lower back during the third inning and again in the fifth. Despite these moments of discomfort the Rocket pitched 8 complete innings of shutout baseball giving up only 2 hits and striking out 9. He threw only 88 pitches.
(The Astros lost the game 1 to 0 in the 9th inning when their ace reliever Brad Lidge gave up a homerun to Pirate shortstop Jack Wilson).
Clemens hurt his back moving furniture in July but has yet to miss a start.
A debate has begun to emerge among sport’s commentators about whether or not Roger Clemens deserves to win the National League Cy Young Award which is supposed to go to the League’s best pitcher. The Rocket won the award last season. He had his 43rd birthday on Sunday.
This season he has a mind boggling 1.32 ERA easily the lowest by a regular rotation pitcher in 37 years. Bob Gibson had a 1.12 ERA in 1968 the best ever by a modern pitcher.
The problem is that the Astros haven’t been scoring runs themselves on the days he’s been pitching. Eight times in which Clemens has started games the Astros haven’t scored.
Clemens has started 24 games and yet has only 11 wins. Teammate Roy Oswalt has 14 wins with the same number of starts. Chris Carpenter of St. Louis has won 17 games in 24 starts. Clemens and Carpenter have both lost only 4 games and Carpenter’s Cardinals are in first place in the Astros division although Houston is in the lead for the wild card berth.
If you believe is passing these awards around Carpenter should get the National League Cy Young Award.
Recognition of his ERA achievement if he can continue to pitch may yet get Clemens an 8th Cy Young.