Donald Trump announced that he would award former Major League Baseball pitcher Roger Clemens the Presidential Medal of Freedom at a rally in San Antonio, Texas, on Wednesday night. Trump said the Baseball Hall of Fame had cheated Clemens and that he would honor the former superstar instead. The announcement came as the president travels to red states to support GOP candidates ahead of the midterm elections.
Clemens, a two‑time World Series champion with the New York Yankees, won seven Cy Young Awards during his career. He has faced controversy over allegations of extramarital affairs and steroid use, which he has denied. In 2008, the New York Daily News reported a decade‑long affair with country‑music star Mindy McCready, and in 2016 his former trainer Brian McNamee claimed Clemens received steroids and human growth hormone from 1998 to 2001.
During the rally, Trump recalled playing a round of golf with Clemens and said, “It’s a ridiculous thing that you’re not in the Hall of Fame with that kind of a record.” He then dismissed the Hall of Fame, announced the Medal of Freedom, and welcomed Clemens back on stage. The former pitcher expressed that he was stunned and called Trump a “winner.”
Clemens, now based in Texas, said the honor would supersede anything he achieved in his playing career and that he would not want the award from any other president. He added that the Medal of Freedom would place him alongside figures such as Martin Luther King Jr. and the Apollo 11 astronauts. Clemens is married to Debbie and has four children.}
