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Mitchell Report fingers Clemens, Pettitte

BY KEN DAVIDOFF | ken.davidoff@newsday.com

December 14, 2007

New York baseball - all of baseball, really - will never be quite the same.

Former Sen. George Mitchell released his long-awaited report on the use of illegal, performance-enhancing drugs in baseball yesterday, and pointed the finger directly at some of New York's greatest stars.

Roger Clemens, regarded as one of the game's all-time great pitchers, was named as a recidivist steroid user by his longtime strength coach Brian McNamee. Andy Pettitte, Clemens' teammate with both the Yankees and Astros, was also fingered by McNamee, who said he personally injected the players with drugs.

Clemens' attorney, Rusty Hardin, released a statement yesterday saying the pitcher "vehemently" denies using steroids and is "outraged" by the allegation. Pettitte's agent, Randy Hendricks, said he advised his client not to comment.

In total, Mitchell, appointed to this task by baseball commissioner Bud Selig in March 2006, included 18 players who spent time with the Yankees and 13 Mets, including Paul Lo Duca and All-Star catcher Todd Hundley.

McNamee, of Breezy Point, and his drug connection, former Mets clubhouse attendant Kirk Radomski of Manorville, stood out as the "stars" of the report, as one Major League Baseball official put it, supplying the bulk of the names and accompanying evidence like eyewitness accounts, canceled checks, delivery slips and personal notes.

At the end of his presentation at the Grand Hyatt Hotel, Mitchell urged baseball to go forward, recommending that only the most egregious offenses be handled by disciplinary means.

But baseball commissioner Bud Selig doesn't seem so forgiving. Yesterday at Major League Baseball headquarters, Selig vowed that punishments would be seriously contemplated.

"I really don't think, frankly, that I could overlook this and say, 'Well, we're going to move forward,'" Selig said. He said he would handle disciplinary matters on a "case-by-case" basis.

In the meantime, Selig, Mitchell and Players Association head Don Fehr might have to make a trip to Washington. Their presence has been requested by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee - the same committee that memorably roasted baseball and its players on March 17, 2005 - for a hearing on Tuesday. As of last night, none of the trio had committed to attending.

"This is a sad day for Major League Baseball but a good day for integrity in sports," committee chairman Henry Waxman (D.-Calif.) and ranking minority member Tom Davis (R-Va.) said in a joint statement. The hearing, the congressman said, will be held to ensure that Mitchell's recommended changes occur quickly.

It's clear that those in the greatest danger of being disciplined are the players fingered by Radomski, who testified to Mitchell in return for a lesser sentence. Those involved in the BALCO scandal - a group that includes home run king Barry Bonds, Yankee Jason Giambi and former Yankee Gary Sheffield - will very likely get off without any punishment. That said, Clemens and Pettitte will probably not be disciplined. Both players' reported transgressions occurred before 2003, when drug testing became part of baseball's collective bargaining agreement. Clemens might retire, in any case.

Players most likely to be suspended would have to meet the same standard as Orioles outfielder Jay Gibbons, who received a 15-day suspension last week. Gibbons and Royals outfielder Jose Guillen, who is appealing his 15-day suspension, both received shipments of human growth hormone in 2005, by which time HGH was listed as an illegal drug. Other players who purchased HGH prior to 2005 were acquitted.

Mitchell, looking forward, made 19 recommendations to baseball to improve its drug-testing program and overall environment. Baseball can enact many of them without cooperation from the Players Association and Selig vowed to execute them.Others can be executed only through collective bargaining.

Said Fehr, in a statement: "We will review and consider what [Mitchell] has to say. ... However, we must remember that a strong collective bargaining relationship requires mutual respect for the agreements that have been reached."

This story was supplemented with wire reports.

Q&A

What will be the report's impact? The impact might be greater on one person than everyone else in the report combined: Roger Clemens. The seven-time Cy Young Award winner is identified as a recidivist user of illegal, performance-enhancing drugs. Clemens' reputation has been considerably damaged. Everyone else, even popular Yankees pitcher Andy Pettitte, should proceed with his life relatively unscathed.

If a player isn't named, does that means he's clean? Not at all. Who knows how many more dealers lurk out there? Mitchell acknowledged as much.

How many players will be suspended? Very few, if any. Most of the reported transgressions occurred before 2003, when baseball first enacted a collectively bargained drug-testing program.