Farnsworth Rips Clemens

From the Journal News' Peter Abraham

Kyle Farnsworth went on a Chicago radio station this morning and criticized Roger Clemens for his “family plan” agreement with the Yankees.

“It might cause some friction … Granted this is going to be his 23rd or 24th year and he can get the opportunity to do that, but still, I think if you’re going to be part of the team you should be there always,” Farnsworth told The Score.

“You win as a team, you lose as a team…I respect what he’s done and I respect him as a person and a player but to be a part of the team you have to be there with the team.”

Farnsworth didn’t back off his words when we spoke to him, pointing out that he played with Randy Johnson and Greg Maddux and they never had those perks.

I suspect Farnsworth is saying what others players are thinking. It’s a bit strange that an reliever with a 4.41 ERA would take on Clemens, however.

Joe Torre snapped, “next question” when asked about Farnsworth. But he then repeated that he would deal with any objection to Clemens only if the issue came up.

I have been told that the “family plan” agreement with Clemens is a handshake deal and not part of his contract. Based on what Torre has been saying, it seems likely that Clemens will be around the team far more than he was with Houston in recent seasons.

It really comes down to this: If Clemens wins games and pitches well, nobody will care. If he doesn’t and is away often, it will become an issue.

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