Clemens Goes "All-in" Again With Another Bad PR Gamble

Roger Clemens will never win the World Series...of Poker. Neither will his new PR team.

However, both could learn a lot from the Gambler himself, Kenny Rogers - "You have to know when to hold 'em, when to fold 'em, and when to walk away". Wise advice indeed that a good PR person entering a sticky steroid-tarnished reputation project should have drilled into Clemens.

Sadly, that didn't happen. Hence, behold the wreckage from this week's bizarre appearance on national radio. Clemens, after already dealing himself horrible hand after horrible hand with a 5 of Clubs high-card each time, just went "all-in" again and along the way, accused everyone else at the table of cheating - including "the house".

Mistakes from Clemens' new PR machine abound, but let's start with the fundamental problem - not "knowing" your own client.

The most immediate and vital service a competent PR person can provide is not advice - it is gaining a deep understanding of the client's psyche. If you understand what makes your clients tick, then you know exactly how to jump on opportunities that fall in their wheelhouse and avoid those that could sink the ship. In the case of Clemens, you are dealing with an ultra-competitive personality who has made a living off of "willing" victory from the jaws of defeat. Your client is so driven to be right all the time that he has already risked perjury charges via an ill-advised appearance in Congress. It wasn't very bright to shout innocence over reported steroid use when your best friend Andy Pettite, at the same hearing, refutes your story. The DNA testing didn't help either, but in the case of Clemens, many Americans had sort of forgotten about it. Factors like time, A-Rod and Manny had simmered the the raging grease fire in Clemens' kitchen.

Until now.

Probably desiring to "get the client out there" and make a quick statement that there's a new sheriff in town, Clemens' new PR Rep sent Roger out on ESPN radio to refute a new book being released about steroid use in baseball - and particularly, Clemens' prominent role in this scandal. Problem is that few people knew anything about the book until Clemens went public to bash it. Even radio host Mike Golic admitted on air that he had no idea any new book was coming out until Clemens' PR person called to schedule an interview.

And to make matters worse, the book was not written by someone with limited credibility like Clemens' arch-enemy and steroid-dealer Brain McNamee....or roid-poster-boy Jose Canseco. Instead, it was written by well-respected sports journalists led by the NY Daily News who took several painstaking years to compile extensive data and fact-check numerous sources. Yet among the obvious talking points provided for the interview, Clemens' made sure to call the book "people crawling up my back to make a buck."

Attacking four journalists is never a good idea. And because the media doesn't make CEO pay, trying to deprive a reporter/author of a revenue-source that took years of blood, sweat and tears to write is all but certain to further alienate colleagues. How do you think the baseball writers, who choose future Hall of Fame classes, appreciated their profession being trashed by a suspected roid-head facing federal perjury charges?

Even the "new material" in Clemens' press kit sounded ridiculous. For example, saying he would be crazy to use steroids because of a family history of heart disease...via the step-father!... definitely flunks the credibility test. And his whole rant about foundations and charity golf events sounded similar to the convicted corrupt politician who suddenly found religion. In all, the presentation came off looking sloppy and desperate.

Quite frankly, the interview should have never been scheduled in the first place - regardless of content.

Roger Clemens' continuing blunders could teach any company that good Public Relations does not emanate from Public Noise. Like I always say, "Be who you are", but "say everything out loud first" before going public - because sometimes, the best move may be to fold 'em and walk way.