Pettitte Scheduled to Head to Hill

[February 04, 2008]  WASHINGTON (AP) -- Andy Pettitte lent credence to the Mitchell Report by acknowledging he received two injections of human growth hormone from a personal trainer who worked with him and Roger Clemens.

Now Pettitte will be asked to tell Congress what he knows.

The New York Yankees pitcher was scheduled to be interviewed privately Monday by lawyers from the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, part of preparation for a Feb. 13 public hearing.

A former Yankees teammate of Pettitte and Clemens, Chuck Knoblauch, spoke to committee staff Friday. The day before, an employee of the sports agency that represents Clemens and Pettitte went to Capitol Hill to be interviewed.

Clemens, Pettitte and Knoblauch were among more than 80 players linked to performance-enhancing drugs in former Senate majority leader George Mitchell's report on drug use in baseball.

Former trainer Brian McNamee said he injected Clemens with human growth hormone and steroids in 1998, 2000 and 2001. The seven-time Cy Young Award winner has denied the allegations repeatedly. McNamee also told Mitchell he injected Pettitte two to four times with HGH -- and two days after the report was released in December, Pettitte said he took HGH for two days to deal with an elbow injury in 2002.

The 35-year-old Pettitte, who won four World Series championships with the Yankees, returned to the team last season and went 15-9. This offseason, he put off retirement and agreed to a $16 million, one-year contract to play for the Yankees next season.

McNamee also said he acquired HGH from former New York Mets clubhouse employee Kirk Radomski for Knoblauch in 2001 -- and McNamee said he injected Knoblauch with HGH. Radomski pleaded guilty in April to federal felony charges of distributing steroids and laundering money. He is scheduled to be sentenced next Friday.

Last week, a lawyer representing McNamee said he believed Pettitte would tell Congress he discussed HGH with Clemens between the 2001 and 2002 seasons. The lawyer, Earl Ward, said Pettitte talked about HGH with McNamee following a conversation with Clemens.

Richard Emery, another lawyer for McNamee, has said the trainer and Pettitte also discussed steroids use by Clemens.

Clemens is scheduled to give a deposition or transcribed interview to committee lawyers Tuesday, followed by McNamee on Thursday, and Radomski on Feb. 12.

Letters sent by committee chairman Henry Waxman and ranking Republican Tom Davis to Clemens, Pettitte and Knoblauch on Jan. 16, requesting their appearances both at the hearing and a pre-hearing deposition or interview, said: "The committee asks that you provide testimony about allegations in Senator George Mitchell's report ... that you and other Major League Baseball players used performance enhancing drugs during your professional baseball career."

[Associated Press; By HOWARD FENDRICH]

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