American Icon: The Fall of Roger Clemens and the Rise of Steroids in America's Pastime

by Teri Thompson, Michael O'Keeffe, Nathaniel Vinton

It was an epic downfall. In twenty-four seasons pitcher Roger Clemens put together one of the greatest careers baseball has ever seen. Seven Cy Young Awards, two World Series championships, and 354 victories made him a lock for the Hall of Fame. But on December 13, 2007, the Mitchell Report laid waste to all that. Accusations that Clemens relied on steroids and human growth hormone provided and administered by his former trainer, Brian McNamee, have put Clemens in the crosshairs of a Justice Department investigation.

Why did this happen? How did it happen? Who made the decisions that altered some lives and ruined others? How did a devastating culture of drugs, lies, sex, and cheating fester and grow throughout Major League Baseball's clubhouses? The answers are in these extraordinary pages.

American The Fall of Roger Clemens and the Rise of Steroids in America’s Pastime is about much more than the downfall of a superstar. While the fascinating portrait of Clemens is certainly at the center of the action, the book takes us outside the white lines and inside the lives and dealings of sports executives, trainers, congressmen, lawyers, drug dealers, groupies, a porn star, and even a murderer—all of whom have ties to this saga. Four superb investigative journalists have spent years uncovering the truth, and at the heart of their investigation is a behind-the-scenes portrait of the maneuvering and strategies in the legal war between Clemens and his accuser, McNamee.

This compelling story is the strongest examination yet of the rise of illegal drugs in America’s favorite sport, the gym-rat culture in Texas that has played such an important role in spreading those drugs, and the way Congress has dealt with the entire issue. Andy Pettitte, Jose Canseco, Alex Rodriguez, and Chuck Knoblauch are just a few of the other players whose moving and sometimes disturbing stories are illuminated here as well. The New York Daily News Sports Investigative Team has written the definitive book on corruption and the steroids era in Major League Baseball. In doing so, they have managed to dig beneath the disillusion and disappointment to give us a stirring look at heroes who all too often live unheroic shadow lives.

Genres: Sports, Baseball, Nonfiction

464 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2009

Reviews

[Zach Koenig · Rating 5 out of 5]

When Roger Clemens was in the glare of the courtroom spotlight in the early months of 2008, culminating in his testimony in front of Congress, it was nearly (if not practically) impossible for the "common man" to really figure out what is going on. When the events themselves were actually transpiring and both the Clemens and McNamee legal teams were in full "attack" mode, the truth was obfuscated so much that for those not on the investigative trail it was impossible to separate fact from fiction. "American Icon", however, culls through all the important details of the Clemens/McNamee battle and finally, with the ability to tell the narrative all the way through, sorts through the details to give a much clearer picture of what actually was happening both in the court rooms and behind closed doors.

What I admire about this book is that its authors come right out and say that they essentially believe Clemens is the "bad guy" in this dispute. There is no doubt what their beliefs are on that matter. However, they then present an exhaustive case to prove their point. While reading, I never got the feeling that they were trying to vilify Clemens or present McNamee as any kind of saint himself. Instead, they just let the facts speak for themselves by putting them in logical order and explaining them enough so that common people can get a timeline of what was really happening both before and after the Mitchell Report that seemed to change everything.

As an example of some of the exhaustive research included in this book, there were parts of the text (mostly those dealing with the teams of lawyers involved) where my eyes began to get a little bleary while reading. It wasn't boring, per say, but the writers wanted to make sure that the reasons for every action from Clemens/McNamee were sufficiently covered.

Overall, I consider "American Icon" to be the definitive story of the Clemens/McNamee court battle (at least up until the February 2008 hearings). What "Game of Shadows" did for BALCO and "Juicing The Game" did for the steroid era in baseball in general, "American Icon" does for Roger Clemens and the now sad state of what could have been a remarkable legacy. It is (at times) a very sad book for baseball fans to read, but yet also quite important to understand just how deep the denials and cover-ups went.

[Kay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just when I thought I had read- or wanted to read- every book ever written on the steroid issue they publish this book detailing the fall of Rocket man. Too cheap to shell out the money, I request my library to order it. The first half of the book is great- a 5 star account with details on the life of Roger Clements and Andy Petite among others. The last half was like wading thru quicksand . It’s the reason I don’t read a lot of true crime novels anymore since the trial part is slow and boring.

The authors stressed the political part of it and accusing Republicans of being the bad guys for questioning and picking on poor McNamee, the trainer. And the Democrats for being upstanding because they accused, condemned and yelled at the big bad Clements, friend of the Bush family! McNamee’s lawyers and team were the heroes because they were liberals and Clements team the villain conservative team. I really felt confused at the end of the book when a few of Clements team had to drop off his case because they were appointed by Obama to fill several offices! Did I miss something????

I have such mixed feelings regarding the steroid issue. I’m not convinced congress should waste our money and time on such things, but at the same time I feel testing and punishment should be handed out for those who break the rules. If MLB and the Player’s Union did not oversee to make sure players were held accountable then someone needed to step up to the plate! BUT for these past infractions when many rules and certainly no punishment was in effect can’t we forget and forgive. There will be no deserving Hall of Fame candidates from this period if we don’t! I do think lying under oath is a very serious offense but why not give these players the same punishment that was given to Bill Clinton!!!

[RICK "SHAQ" GOLDSTEIN · Rating 5 out of 5]

RICK “SHAQ” GOLDSTEIN SAYS: “UNDER TITLE 18, UNITED STATES CODE, SECTION 1001, IT IS ILLEGAL TO LIE TO A FEDERAL AGENT”
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This book is a four-hundred-twenty-eight page (Not counting sources and index.) intricately detailed and exhaustively researched expose on the illegal use of *PERFORMANCE-ENHANCING-DRUGS*… both inside and outside baseball. Though the main subject is Roger Clemens… this microscopic account covers all the participants in the brazen use… distribution… and attempted legal defense of the characters… who willingly… and knowingly… broke federal laws… the rules of baseball… and provided countless young boys with the worst possible role models… that the adult world could ever imagine… and Clemens is by far not the only famous personality “hung” in the public square… warts and all… for the world to see. This book also reveals “chapter and verse” on the people in this sordid circle… who have now become the *USUAL-SUSPECTS*. A mere sampling of these include: Brian McNamee, Kirk Radomski, Andy Pettitte, Jason Giambi, Jose Canseco, Chuck Knoblauch, Rafael Palmeiro, Mark McGwire, Kevin Brown, Sammy Sosa and Jason Grimsley… who was involved in the highest impact federal takedown since the Balco investigation… which resulted in a published document naming (redacted) names… that alerted the entire world… that the upcoming Mitchell Report… would not resemble in any way… the laissez-faire approach to illegal drug use that the spineless powers-that-be in Major League Baseball were famous for. The release of this document sent chills up and down the spines of everybody involved in big league baseball.

What sets this book above the truck load full of previous books in the baseball-steroid genre is the meticulous accounting of not only every step taken by drug dealers… ballplayers… trainers… and management… but every half-step between each step… of not only the previously mentioned participants… but a “fly-on-the-wall” readers-eye-view of the maneuvering of all the lawyers hired by all the participants. Extremely interesting is the additional detail the author’s unfurl that follows each public mea-culpa’s such as when Andy Pettitte admitted using HGH for only two days- “TWO DAYS OF PERHAPS BAD JUDGMENT AS HE PUT IT-IN 2002. WELL HE’D USED THE SAME BAD JUDGMENT TWO YEARS LATER. HIS 2002 DECISION WAS COMING BACK TO HAUNT HIM. HE DIDN’T KNOW WHAT THE RESULT OF HIS 2004 TRANSGRESSION WOULD BE.”

The showdown of all showdowns is what will happen as the federal government goes after Roger Clemens… because the most powerful parts of the Mitchell report were based on sworn testimony by two trainers and providers of performance enhancing drugs… Brian McNamee and Kirk Radomski… Kirk sold the drugs to Brian… and Brian injected them in Clemens and Pettitte. Pettitte admitted that Brian injected him with HGH… but Clemens denies it… despite the fact that any logical person would say… Why would Brian be telling the truth about Andy and lying about Roger? This is in addition to the syringes, gauze and blood that Brian accumulated from use on Clemens and turned over to the government. So Clemens is trying to use his celebrity and wealth to discredit Brian… while the government led by federal agent Jeff Novitzky… the same agent who spearheaded the infamous Balco case… has pressured Brian with threats of jail if he lies on *ANYTHING*… thus leading to the conundrum that the authors state so eloquently: “CLEMENS AND NOVITZKY WERE HEADED FOR A COLLISION, AND BOTH OF THEM HAD VASTLY MORE RESOURCES TO DRAW UPON THAN THE MAN (BRIAN) CAUGHT IN THE MIDDLE.”

If the potential reader hasn’t read all the previous sports/steroid books leading up to this one… I can give you a thumb nail synopsis of the main ones… since I have. In no particular order nor ranking: A&B) The two Canseco books… though accurate in the names named… artistically are clownish due to the egotistical love fest that Canseco has with himself. C) Kirk Radomski’s is similar to Canseco in egotism as he tries to “break his arm patting himself on the back” as he (according to himself) is tied with Canseco for being the most brilliant man in the history of steroids. D) Bill Romonowski’s is a crowing bully till he gets on Sixty Minutes and then he cries like a baby. E) Game Of Shadows is the seminal book on steroids based on facts without the author’s sullying the process with self-love. F) Jeff Pearlman’s is well written and his satirical comments interspersed with the facts, comes across like you’re talking with one of your buddies over a beer. G) A-Rod is based on fact… but sullied by the author’s personal salvos of “Good Alex”-“Bad Alex”, etc. H) American Icon is so well researched that at times it may be almost too much detail… but it lays out every situation from every angle. It also has the advantage of being the most recent. Between these eight books… I don’t think the reading public needs another steroid dissertation until there’s a trial whether it’s Clemens… Bonds… or who knows??

[J.b. Likeric · Rating 2 out of 5]

An ok book. Many names, too many to keep track of. I guess they are all important in their own way for the story to be told. Steroids changing the face of baseball is one I personally am conflicted with. Yes shameful, but also as I look at it, all parties involved were way too slow to see what was going on, and nip it in the bud. I cannot say players wanting to enhance their productivity were wrong. It was a way to do it at the time and , I believe, was generally accepted. Not till the records were getting busted with gusto, did baseball powers say " hold on here this is not right". I am glad that over time steroids in sports has been addressed, however I cannot condemn our sports figures for their actions when it was an accepted, or should I say, overlooked way of doing business.
This book made Roger Clemons look like an idiot. And perhaps he is. I do not know. But I do know that it was fun to watch , as a fan, The great pitching, home runs being belted. I remember thinking wow this is something. I also am very glad that the game has kinda settled down. Thanks for letting me babble.

[Brendan · Rating 4 out of 5]

It tells the story of pitcher Roger Clemens and his trainer Brian McNamee. It talks about how much of an effect steroids were in Major League Baseball at the time. If you are interested in sports, I would recommend this book.

[Ben · Rating 3 out of 5]

A while ago I read an article in Sports Illustrated about steroids in Baseball that fascinated me. The article was about several minor league players right at the margins of getting bumped up to the majors. The ones who "juiced" got bumped up and had relative success while those who didn't stayed in the minors. This made me see steroids in sports in a different light. Its about more than drugs and money. At its heart I feel that its a real and wrenching moral tragedy and not to be too grandiose but in the baseball steroids scandal I see a reflection of America as a whole.

The beginning of Roger Clemens life was the American dream. He was raised by a single mother in poor circumstances but through hard work, grit and natural ability he rose to be one of the most dominant pitchers in baseball history. He was not known for his craft and his subtlety (though I'm sure he had those too) but for his raw power. His pitches blazed in at unnatural speeds (thus his nickname "the Rocket") and he wasn't afraid to brush off batters. He trained ferociously and seemed to will himself to win and to succeed. These are qualities that many Americans see as distinctively American: toughness, hard work, aggressive dominance,and an iron will.

But as the authors of this book tell it, in a tragic irony worthy of the Greeks, the same qualities that made Clemens succeed were also his downfall. His unrelenting determination to win and dominate led him to use steroids to give himself a boost as he grew older and his fierce competitive spirit led him to ferociously deny all charges against him even when it became obvious that he was lying. This led to a downfall as low as his ascent had been high. And it all seems so unnecessary. If Clemens had never used steroids, he would still probably be one of the best pitchers in baseball history. Instead he stands as a symbol of the excess and hubris of the steroids era.

One line that I remember well from this book is a quote from Jose Canseco in one of his tell-all books. He says something to the effect of, "If everybody wants you to do it, is it still cheating?" The fact that anyone at all asks that question is revealing but it was more than just Canseco using that line of reasoning. Players used all sorts of excuses to justify cheating. Everyone else was doing it so players needed to juice just to make the playing field even. They just used it to recover from injuries. The league and the fans enabled and tolerated it. The feats of the juiced up supermen on the diamond brought wealth, power and fame. Such and such a drug was not illegal etc. When the scandal reached a fever pitch players denied everything that they could. Why should they be punished when so many others got off without a hitch?

Maybe my favorite part of the book was the account of Andy Pettite's and Chuck Knoblauch's testimony before Congress. At least how the authors tell it Pettite and Knoblauch were shining examples of integrity. They were forthright and cooperative and told more than they had to. Pettite relied on his faith and Knoblauch thought about what his little son would think when he grew up. They stand in stark contrast to Clemens who smeared any who dared accuse him of steroid use (especially his former trainer Brian McNamee) and rambled, hemmed and hawed when confronted with inconsistencies in his story.

Pettite and Knoblauch are the exceptions that prove the rule. Their integrity is unfortunately very conspicuous. They show the moral bankruptcy and crass finger pointing of just about everyone around them: the league, the players union, individual players like Clemens, the lawyers, the press and even McNamee who testified more out of fear of prosecution than anything else. Its unfortunate that none of them seemed to have the integrity that two Yankees from Texas had.

This was an excellent book. I especially enjoyed the blow by blow account of the legal drama with the politics, testimony before Congressional committees, law enforcement, subpoenas, press statements, and evidence. Admittedly, it is a tad sensationalist as it was based largely on the writing that the authors did for the tabloidy New York Daily News. But I was surprised and pleased with the understanding of the authors and their sense of the tragedy and comedy of the entire situation. Well worth the read for anyone interested in steroids in baseball.

[Mazola1 · Rating 3 out of 5]

American Icon shows that sometimes you can tell a book by its cover. The cover tells us that the book is about a celebrated athlete and how his career tracked the growth and development of the use of performance enhancing drugs in his sport.

On the front cover, that athlete, Roger Clemens, who used his right arm to win 354 big league games, is shown in the uniform of the New York Yankees with that right arm cocked to throw. But his hand holds not a baseball, but a bat shard. Clemens, clearly enraged, is in the process of hurling the bat fragment at an opposing batter. Presumably, Clemens was in a steroid induced rage. On the back cover, Clemens, in a business suit, is raising that right hand, swearing to tell the truth at a congressional hearing into the use of steroids in baseball. Presumably, Clemens then committed perjury by denying ever having used any performance enhancing drugs. And between those two covers is the complicated story of the rise and fall of Roger Clemens and the rise of the use of steroids in baseball.

American Icon details Clemens' supposed use of steroids and human growth hormone, drawing on many sources, chief among them being the testimony of his former trainer. In many ways, it's a typical story of the type of special treatment celebrities get, and the type of groupies or hangers-on that they attract. If it's true that superstar celebrities often think and act as if the rules don't apply to them, it's also true that there's usually no shortage of people all to happy to help them bend, break and ignore the rules. And it's also true that when things go wrong, those people are then tossed under the train by the celebrity, and sometimes then spill the beans, either to save their own skins, or to lash back. In a nutshell, that's the story of Roger Clemens, his trainer, and steroids.

American Icon is fascinating at times, while at other times mind numbingly boring, especially towards the end. It's also very thought provoking. Clemens was a dominant pitcher, a storied strike out king, a fierce competitor. Steroids may have helped him to extend his career and continue to perform at a high level well into his late thirties. But it's also true that steroids or any other performance enhancing drug aren't enough by themselves. Simply taking steroids won't add muscle, improve coordination, or enable a pitcher who can't throw a curve ball to suddenly be able to do so. Those things take hard work and talent. Clemens had talent in prodigous amounts and worked his tail off. If he took drugs, some weren't even banned by baseball at the time he took them, and baseball didn't have a testing program with teeth in it.

Indeed, baseball seemed to wink at the "problem" of drugs as obvious steroid users thrilled fans by setting new home run records after baseball's near death experience following the players' strike. Clemens was pitching to many steroid taking batters, including admitted users Mark McGuire and Jose Canseco, and probable user, the bloated and muscle bound home run king, Barry Bonds.

Perhaps the real problem is that Clemens lied to Congress about his use of drugs. American Icon is harshly critical of Clemens for that, as well as of Clemens' ill-conceived attempt to salvage his reputation by accusing his accuser of not telling the truth. At the same time, the book describes the partisan political gamesmanship that infected the hearings, the strongarm tactics of the federal investigators who pressured trainers into turning on and ratting out their employers, and the peculiar nature of the Mitchell investigation. That part of the story is in many ways much more troubling than Clemens' use of drugs and his denial that he did so.

From Oscar Wilde to John Edwards, public figures have struggled to defend their public images against accusations of bad behavior, often with disasterous results. In this regard, American Icon is both an old story, and a very current one.

[Davidswriting · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fairly long book, but quite readable and engaging. I would have given it five stars except that it was published before results of the trials that it detailed. While I guess this could have been to save the integrity of their opinions, which are somewhat irrelevent to the outcome of the trial, it does seem like the release was rushed.

Anybody who is interested in baseball, body building, steroids, and the American legal system will find something in this book. On some levels it is also a juicy gossip piece about the lifestyles of rich and famous atheletes, but looking at the sources sited at the end of the book, it is clear that the authors did their research.

One new detail I learned about the steroids era of baseball is that it was exposed basically by a single agent who followed the paper trail of illegal drug purchases, rather than by drug testing. It's a fascinating read for anybody interested in the topics, and possibly by an open minded non-sports reader.

[Oliver Bateman · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting companion piece to the excellent Game of Shadows. American Icon tells the next half of the steroid saga: the grisly, pathetic aftermath of a decade of duplicity as viewed through the experience of Roger Clemens. Clemens, a zealot who probably believes that he didn't use HGH in spite of the fact that he did, struggles to preserve his tarnished reputation. He and his legal team pull out all the stops, but eventually some version of the truth wins out. Although this story features no sympathetic characters, it is readable and compelling in spite of its length and emphasis on minute details. I should have finished it a month ago, but the fact that I kept reading it speaks volumes about its importance. American Icon is a significant piece of cultural and legal history that should, with the inclusion of an epilogue, age reasonably well.

[Sandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved this book- I closely followed the Congressional hearings and really enjoyed the behind the scenes details in this book. I don't like Clemens-when he threw the piece of a bat at Piazza and then said he thought it was the baseball I lost all respect for him. And the saddest part of this book is how clear it is that Clemens really thought he was so respected in the sport that he could just say he did not do steroids and every one would believe him- he "misremembered"that most fans outside Yankee territory did not like him and really had no respect for him.

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Did Roger Clemons use steriods?

Read the book and I think you will agree that he did.
However, instead of telling the truth Clemons lied about it over and over again.

The book goes into all of the investigations that were conducted concerning steriods in baseball. It talks about how Jose Conseco, Andy Petitte, and others were linked to steriods too.

This book is loaded with facts. IF you want to know more about this issue read the book.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

not really sure why I read this book - I loved baseball as a kid growing up, but, became completely uninterested when they canceled the series in '94, after waiting virtually my whole life for a team to come to Denver - and it only reaffirmed my cynicism about the modern game

[Dave Metge · Rating 2 out of 5]

guilty

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really a great expose on the steroid era in baseball and particularly the delusional behavior of Roger Clemens.

[Jim Weir · Rating 5 out of 5]

If half of what's in this book is true, Roger Clemens has diluted himself into believing he never took performance enhancing drugs.

[Dale Stonehouse · Rating 1 out of 5]

The book might have been better than that but I can't stand Clemens.

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting how the traits that make a person great are the same ones that lead to a fall from grace. A very interesting read if you are a baseball fan.

[Russ Haeber · Rating 5 out of 5]

He misremembers.....

[Paul Miller]

Unless you wish to read a tortuously long book chronicling what you already know (Clements is a huge cheater), avoid this book like the plaque. Way too many other good sports books out there.