Blast off

Can a 44-year-old guy save your fantasy team?

Nope, it’s not Julio Franco – he’s 48, and he won’t help that much. I’m talking about Roger Clemens, the player whose comeback has New York Yankees fans and fantasy players alike buzzing. It’s probably too late to pick him up off the waiver wire in just about every league, but those who have him are wondering if the Rocket is their lift ticket to a championship.

First of all, if you had the foresight to draft Clemens, I commend you. It looks like your gamble paid off - unless of course you’re in a National League-only format and were hoping he’d stay close to home with the Houston Astros. Oops.

So what’s a safe projection for Clemens this year? It’s important to remember not only is he pitching an abbreviated season, he’s also switching back to the considerably tougher American League. If he returns in early June as expected and stays healthy, he’ll make roughly 22-25 starts and could win about half of them if all goes well.

There’s no way Clemens will approach his sub-3.00 ERAs of the past few seasons with Houston. The lineups of the AL East are simply too challenging, no matter how many Cy Young awards in your trophy case. Don’t forget Clemens, in his first stint with the Bombers from 1999-2003, averaged about a 4.00 ERA, and that was back when he was still a 30-something.

The run support in the Bronx will certainly be better than he received in Houston, though. And when we last saw him in the big leagues in 2006 he showed he could still overpower hitters (8.10 strikeouts per nine innings) and possessed good control (3.52 strikeout-to-walk ratio). The odds are Clemens, even at his advanced age, will still be an above-average AL pitcher.

But will he be a difference-maker? I suppose it depends on the rest of your staff. If you’re OK in the arms department, now might be a good time to dangle Clemens out there as trade bait and see what kind of offers you get. He’s probably a bit overvalued based on his reputation, but now that we know for sure he’ll be pitching 2007, you may find a trade partner who’s expecting the Rocket to blast to the past.

If you can’t get your hands on Clemens, here are some other helpful starters who may be available:

• James Shields might be that elusive second starter the Tampa Bay Devil Rays have yearned for. The unheralded youngster was fourth in the AL in strikeouts (49) through Thursday and is coming off a nine-inning scoreless outing against the Baltimore Orioles.

• Fausto Carmona failed in his stint as a reliever for the Cleveland Indians last year, but don’t let that sour your opinion. The 23-year-old’s posted good numbers (3-1, 2.97 ERA, 1.20 WHIP) filling in for injured Tribe starters, first Cliff Lee and now Jake Westbrook, who’s on the disabled list for three to five weeks.

• Tom Gorzelanny is the Pittsburgh Pirates’ other talented, young left-hander, but he’s been much better than “ace” Zach Duke. His stats are quite respectable (4-2, 2.72 ERA, 29/13 K/BB ratio), so don’t hesitate to give him a try.