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Despite outside interest, Roger Clemens not planning to run for Texas congressional seat

Ryan Young
·Staff writer
Former Yankees and Red Sox pitcher Roger Clemens said he has no plans to run for a Texas Congressional seat, despite reported interest from current representative Pete Olson.

Former Major League Baseball pitcher Roger Clemens is not planning to run for a congressional seat in Texas despite support from current Rep. Pete Olson (R-Texas), according to ABC News.

Olson announced his plans to retire last month, and reportedly encouraged the former New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox star to run for his seat. Clemens wrote a message to Olson last week, stating that he was “honored” that Olson would “consider me a candidate to represent our great State of Texas in the 22 District,” but that he had no interest in running.

“The climate in politics at this time is much more than I would want to undertake along with my family considerations,” Clemens wrote in the message, via ABC News.

Clemens went to high school in the Houston area and currently lives in Texas’ 22nd Congressional District, which covers areas just south of Houston — including Sugar Land and Pearland, Texas. The district generally votes Republican, and Olson won with nearly 60 percent of the vote in 2016. President Donald Trump won by eight points in that district in the 2016 presidential election, too, according to ABC News.

Clemens has not run for political office since his playing career ended, though has donated to Republican candidates in the past. He currently serves as a special assistant to the general manager with the Astros.

Clemens played in the league from 1984-2007. The 11-time All-Star helped lead the Yankees to back-to-back World Series wins in 1999 and 2000 and won seven Cy Young awards during his 24-year career.

Curt Schilling still mulling congressional run

Though Clemens has tabled a potential career in politics, another former baseball star is considering that path.

Former pitcher and ESPN analyst Curt Schilling said earlier this month that he is “absolutely considering” running for Congress in Arizona. Schilling did not identify which district he is considering running for in Arizona, and currently identifies as a Massachusetts resident. Schilling, who played for the Diamondbacks from 2001-03, went to high school in the Phoenix area.

“Not ready to do any of that right now. If/When things solidify I will but right now it's something in the 'I'm considering it' stage," Schilling wrote in an email to the Arizona Republic.

“The state is not the state I grew up in. Making Arizona citizens of EVERY Race, religion and sexual orientation 2nd class citizens to illegal immigrants is about as anti-American as it gets. When you have homeless veterans, children, and you're spending tax dollars on people smuggling drugs and children across our border someone in charge needs their ass kicked.”

Schilling played in the league from 1988-2007, most notably with the Philadelphia Phillies and the Red Sox. He served as an analyst for ESPN from 2010-2016, though he was fired in 2016 after sharing offensive posts on social media. His potential run for Congress elicited a supportive response from Trump on Twitter, too.

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