Trivia question....who had the best record in all of MLB in the 2nd half of 1996? The Red Sox. But no one knows because they were so bad the first two months of the year that their season was already over.
Roger's "decline" in 1996. His 242 inning, 257 strikeout, 7.7 WAR "decline" where he struck out 20 in a game for the second time. Just shows how stupid the obsession with W-L was back then.
I feel like the decline was really 1993-96 ...I remember he started 0-4 that year with a team that they predicted would win 100 games. I wanna say they opened 3-15 and still managed to win 86 games.. Bottom line he struggled to stay healthy 1993-95 but his 1996 season was actually a really good season not by his 1986-1992 standards but good none the less. Duke wasn't gonna commit to mid 30s guy and he had his eye on Pedro..
@danielleary9265 there was no decline. Roger was still very much in his prime. He was simply banged up and missed significant time in 93 (groin tear) and 95 (shoulder) and as a result, he had mediocre years....by his standards. But 94 and 96 were great years. Lead AL starters in ERA in 1994 and I mentioned his great 1996 numbers above... Because he was healthy. Every pitcher has injuries. It was just rare for such a durable workhorse like Clemens.
