Roger Clemens witnesses son Kody Clemens’ first playoff hit, RBI with the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park
The best pitcher in the game over a 20-year span witnessed his son's big moment after a long journey through professional baseball.
Roger Clemens, who, at 62, still looked fit enough to throw a couple of innings of relief for the Phillies, exited the executive suites at Citizens Bank Park beaming with happiness. Clemens is no Mets fan — ask Mike Piazza — and he just saw his kid’s team lose a playoff game in the final two innings.
So why was “Rocket Roger” so happy?
Because that kid, Kody, the youngest of his four sons, got his first postseason hit and RBI in the ninth inning. The Phillies lost Game 1 of the National League Division Series, 6-2, but Kody pinch-hit for Johan Rojas with two out in the ninth inning with J.T. Realmuto on base.
Clemens took two balls from Ryne Stanek, watched a strike, then fouled off four straight pitches. He laid off Ball Three, then ripped a 97 mph fastball down the right-field line for a double.
In an evening of awful at-bats by the Phillies, Clemens’ was probably the best.
“It was a good at-bat,” Kody said. “I’m just glad I felt comfortable in there. That was a good feeling. Yeah, there were a few nerves, but not bad.”
It was a long time coming. Kody is 28. He’s a left-handed corner infielder and outfielder with modest power; in the last four triple-A seasons he’s hit .259 with 63 home runs and an .838 OPS. That’s been enough to earn him 146 major-league appearances in the last three seasons, the last two with the Phillies, who traded for him in 2023. A favorite of Phillies manager Rob Thomson, Clemens hit .219 in 43 games this season, but his OPS jumped to .706, he clocked five homers, and he showed a knack for getting big hits in big moments. That’s why Thomson fought to make Clemens the last player on the Phillies’ playoff roster.
None of those big moments compared with a playoff plate appearance during Red October at the Bank. Roger prepared Kody for the moment.
“He just told me to play the same game I always play,” Kody said. “Obviously, the lights are a little brighter, the crowd’s a little louder. ‘Just play the same game you’ve played your whole life.’ "
Roger has as much experience with big moments as any player alive.
By the time Roger was Kody’s age he’d earned three of his seven Cy Young Awards and he’d won an MVP award. He starred for the Red Sox in baseball’s best town, then starred for the Blue Jays winning back-to-back Cys, then starred for the Yankees during their latest dominant run, then starred in Houston in his home state. A lightning rod for controversy — most notably, for his connection with performance-enhancing drugs ruined his Hall of Fame candidacy — Clemens was baseball’s biggest star for 20 years.
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He saw hundreds of players shrug off their big moment, and he wanted Kody to savor his.
“I told him, ‘Don’t take it for granted, because a lot of great players have played a long time that have never experienced postseason play,’ " Clemens told the Albany Times-Union a few weeks ago. “So I just want him to enjoy the moment.”
And boy, did they both enjoyed it.
Even in a loss.
Even to the Mets.
“I’m pumped that he’s here,” Kody said, pulling on his street cap and heading toward the door. “Can’t wait to see him. Haven’t seen him yet.
“I mean, definitely. It’s cool for me, and it’s cool for him.”