On the surface, I think Clemens is the best pitcher of this generation. I'm guessing the two supports for that claim are his excellence and his longevity. He has an ERA+ of 143 over 24 seasons, and has won 7 Cy Young Awards between 1986 and 2004. As early as 1986 (I learned to sit that fall) and as late as 2004 (I started university in the fall), he was the best pitcher in baseball.
However, all that falls apart when you consider when he started cheating. Most athletes fade at 33-34, when he went to Toronto and started cheating. From the list of all-time ERA+ leaders, look at Pedro, look at Lefty Grove, look at hundreds of others. Without the use of steroids, he might not have made it to 300 wins, never mind 350. He certainly wouldn't have made it to 300 wins with the commanding performance he had. He certainly wouldn't have those last three Cy Youngs. He was close to being washed up when he left Boston.
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