Q: Do you believe that with his diverse pitches and speed, plus his overall athletic ability, that Roger Clemens is the greatest pitcher of all time?
— Bill, Dallas

A: I’ll say this — no pitcher ever has been more dominant at such an advanced age. Is Clemens the best ever? That’s almost impossible to answer. But as he continues to defy age and the odds by pitching so well, he is climbing up to very near the top of the list. He currently is ninth all-time in wins, with the eighth spot only five away. The next step up would take 19 more W’s, or at least through the 2006 season, and possibly beyond. He already is second all-time — and that’s where he will finish — in strikeouts behind Nolan Ryan.

In Clemens’ favor is the fact that for most of his career, the game has been in an unprecedented era of offense. So his numbers have to be viewed more favorably in that context than in the pre-1920 deadball era pitching legends. And in fact, I believe you can make a solid argument that Clemens is the best pitcher since World War II, topping a group that includes Tom Seaver, Steve Carlton, Sandy Koufax, Bob Gibson, Ryan and Warren Spahn, the latter being the only one in the group with more victories. But where it gets real fuzzy is trying to compare the modern era with the early-20^th century greats such as Cy Young, Walter Johnson, Christy Mathewson and Grover Cleveland Alexander, who racked up their numbers under much different circumstances.

Q: Recently, Jason Giambi intentionally bunted a ball down the third-base line because the defense was shifted dramatically to the right side. Why wouldn’t he do that every at-bat until they move back to normal positions?
— J.T., Falconer, N.Y.

A: With the way Giambi has been crushing the ball in the last month or so, teams would be happy to let him lay down a relatively harmless bunt in most situations. That’s why those shifts are employed — to take away from a hitters’ obvious strength (a power hitter pulling the ball). You leave yourself exposed a bit by doing so, but so be it. And if you’re Giambi, you know that you’re not making an eight-figure salary to lay down bunt singles, especially when the situation calls for you to drive the ball and pick up RBIs. Once in a while, such as when your team needs a base-runner, you can lay down that bunt. But a middle-of-the-lineup power hitter such as Giambi is paid to hit the ball over the fence, not 40 feet down the third-base line.

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