Roger Clemens' public image has suffered serious damage recently, from persistent accusations that he used steroids to amass all-star stats, to the revelation that he cheated on his wife with a teenage country singer.
But before any of that happened, Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston considered Clemens to be a hall-of-fame jerk.
Gaston's feelings surfaced yesterday when asked what he thought of a new book, The Rocket That Fell to Earth, in which author Jeff Pearlman hints that Clemens played a role in having Gaston fired by the Jays in 1997, the first of two seasons The Rocket pitched for Toronto.
Gaston said he hadn't heard that before, but he had reached a conclusion on Clemens' character more than a decade ago.
"He's an a-hole himself. A complete a-hole," Gaston said with a chuckle. "And I'll say that loud, right in his face. It was all about him. Ain't about nobody else but him."
For the next five minutes, Gaston, who is starting his first full season in his second stint as Jays manager, detailed his strained relationship with the star pitcher.
Clemens arrived in Toronto after burning out with the Boston Red Sox. In 13 years, he won three Cy Young awards, but posted losing records in three of his final four seasons with the Red Sox.
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