TAMPA — A seven-time Cy Young winner will start imparting insight on pinstriped pitchers Friday, as Roger Clemens is expected to arrive at Yankees camp as a first-time guest instructor.
Clemens has not been involved with the team since 2007, his last year as a player. That December, former Senator George Mitchell released a report on performance-enhancing drug use in baseball, which implicated Clemens and Andy Pettitte, among other high-profile players.
In 2008, Pettitte said The Mitchell Report and the federal government’s investigation into PEDs put a “strain” on his relationship with Clemens, a close friend and longtime teammate in New York and Houston.
Clemens was later indicted and acquitted of lying to Congress about his alleged PED use. Pettitte testified against Clemens in the trial, but he later called his original testimony into question in 2012. Doing so damaged the prosecution’s case against Clemens.
In 2013, the two hugged and shook hands in Houston when the Astros honored another Yankees teammate, the retiring Mariano Rivera, at Minute Maid Park. Now, with Clemens coming to Yankees camp, Pettitte told The Daily News the two are on good terms.
“We obviously have busy lives, a lot of kids running around, but I’ve seen Roger a bunch over the last year,” said Pettitte, now a special advisor and frequent presence with the Yankees. “He lives about a mile and a half away from me. So it’s fine. We get a chance to see each other occasionally, and I’m looking forward to getting a chance to see him.
“Everything’s great.”
Clemens, 62, and Pettitte, 52, were originally teammates with the Yankees from 1999-2003. They won two championships during that span before spending the next three years in Houston. The pair then returned to the Bronx in 2007. Pettitte finished his career there in 2013, winning another ring in 2009 and taking a year off in 2011.
While Pettitte remained a fan favorite after admitting he used human growth hormone, Clemens’ connections to PEDs, which he denied, have tarnished the 354-game winner’s legacy and kept him out of the Hall of Fame.
However, public perception of the Steroid Era has softened in recent years, and the Yankees are eagerly awaiting Clemens’ return on Friday.
“Getting traded to the Yankees at the deadline [in 2003], I didn’t really know Roger,” manager Aaron Boone said. “All I knew is he’s the guy to knock you down a little bit. So I kind of came in here thinking, ‘What’s this guy gonna be?’ And he turned into one of my favorite teammates ever.
“He’s got so much to offer, and he does love this game. I’m excited to have him.”
Boone added that he’s wanted Clemens in camp for “the last couple years.” The skipper called and texted “Rocket” this past offseason before the two linked up at a recent autograph signing event in New Jersey.
Like Boone, Pettitte is confident that Clemens can be of service to the Yankees’ active pitching staff.
“He’s got as much baseball knowledge as anybody you’ll ever find,” Pettitte said. “It’ll be great to have him down here. He’ll have all kinds of things, I’m sure, to share with our pitchers.
“Rog is one of the legends of this game. He’s probably the greatest pitcher that I’ve ever seen before. It’ll be a pleasure, I’m sure, for the guys down here to be around him.”
Pettitte also noted that it will be useful having a right-handed guest instructor at spring training, as he, CC Sabathia and Ron Guidry, all former Yankees in camp, are lefties.
One thing Pettitte isn’t sure about, however, is whether Clemens will throw batting practice. Pettitte does so all the time, but he’s also 10 years younger and has gotten regular reps with the Yankees over the last few years.
“I haven’t seen him throw since he was here, probably,” Pettitte said. “I have no idea about that, but he’ll put a lot of wisdom in our guys, that’s for sure.”