Astros seal deal with Clemens

From the Houston Chronicle:

Roger Clemens has reached a deal with the Astros, signing to pitch for the remainder of the 2006 season.

The team made the move official at a news conference this morning.

"The ball is in my court ... I know I have to take the next step and get my body ready," Clemens said today.

So that he can go down to the minors and work his arm into shape, Clemens signed a split deal. He signed a minor-league contract worth $322,000. Once he is promoted to the majors, he will earn the prorated value of $22,000,022.

Major-league salaries are paid at the daily rate of 1/183rd of the yearly rate per day.

In Clemens' case, his deal will pay him $120,218.70 once he is called up. If he's called up on June 22, he'll earn a total of $12,262,307 for the remaining 102 days in the schedule.

The deal is a major league record for a pitcher.

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Well, it's nice to see that the home team won its bidding war with Clemens' wife and kids--indeed, Houston eclipsed the Clemens Club's offer by two million. Good work Astros! All kidding aside, this is pretty cool. The Rocket isn't the only reason that the Astros made it to their first World Series last year, but he's definitely a big part of the puzzle. They especially need him now. The 'Stros got off to a nice start at the beginning of the season, but I keep seeing "Astros Lose" headlines lately, with which I am all too familiar throughout the course of my life as a Houston sports fan. After last year's kickass finish, I think I'm developing higher standards.

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