Rocket's Return Boosts Book
By Dermot McEvoy -- Publishers Weekly, 5/8/2007 7:30:00 AM
It was a dramatic scene at Yankee Stadium on May 6th as pitcher Roger Clemens, during the seventh inning stretch, told the cheering crowd from the owner’s box that, like MacArthur, he had returned.
Not to be outdone by the big-spending New York Yankees—word is that Clemens has landed the ultimate part-time job at $15 million for four months work—Potomac Books also has Clemens on its roster this spring. Potomac will publish The Rocket: Baseball Legend Roger Clemens by Joseph Janczak in July, just a month after Clemens's projected June 1 return to the Yankees.
In the world of book publicity, that's a homerun with bases loaded."The author is well-connected in Houston," says Potomac's acquisitions editor Kevin Cuddihy. "He’ll be doing lots of talk radio and I’m sure a lot of it will be about how that guy stabbed us in the back." Janczak is a freelance writer and Houston native who watched Clemens rise from a local high school baseball phenom to sure first-ballot Hall-of-Famer.
Of course, one city's back stabber is another's returning hero. And it doesn't hurt that he's coming back to the nation's media capital. "With Clemens back in the news, I hope we’ll be able to get Janczak on a lot of sports radio: Fox, ESPN, Sporting News." Cuddihy said. Although Potomac only plans to print 5,000 hardcover copies as its initial press run, it's keeping an eye on developments and additional sales opportuntiies, especially in New York, where book signings are a strong possibility. The June 1 date—just coincidentally the Yankees will be playing that weekend at Boston—looms large for Potomac. Asked if the July book could be moved up, Cuddihy said, "We’d like to. We’re hoping to have it at our warehouse in June and, of course, just rush it out at that point." Potomac is planning to add a small chapter to bring Clemens's baseball odyssey up to date. There's also debate in-house about whether to change the cover to show Clemens in Yankee pinstripes. Like collecting $15 million bucks for four months work, that seems like a a no-brainer.
