Roger Clemens found not guilty on all six charges

Federal prosecutors have struck out again against ex-Yankee great Roger Clemens.

A jury found the former pitching ace not guilty Monday afternoon of lying to a congressional committee about using performance-enhancing drugs. He was acquitted on all six charges against him after jurors deliberated for about 10 hours.

Tearing up outside of the courthouse, Clemens, 49, said it had been "a hard five years" for him and his family as he fought accusations he used steroids and HGH during his 24-year career.

"I put a lot of hard work into that career," Clemens told reporters after the verdict was read. "I appreciate my teammates that came in and all the emails and phone calls from my teammates."

Prosecutors and jurors did not speak with the media after leaving the courtroom.

It was Clemens' second trial, after the first ended in a mistrial last year when prosecutors showed inadmissible evidence on the second day of testimony.

He faced one count of obstruction of Congress, two counts of perjury, and three counts of making a false statement. If convicted of every charge, he could have been sentenced to 15 months to 21 months behind bars under federal sentencing guidelines.

Clemens' attorney Rusty Hardin called his client "a helluva man."

"This is a celebration for us," Hardin said. "Justice won out."

Clemens, a 10-time All Star who won a record seven Cy Young awards, was among the best baseball players to be accused of using drugs. He did not take the stand in his own defense during the two-month trial. More than 40 witnesses, including Clemens' wife, accuser Brian McNamee and his wife testified.

Clemens began his campaign to clear his name after the MLB issued its Mitchell Report on steroids in 2007, which named him as a user of steroids and HGH in 1998, 2000 and 2001, according to McNamee, his trainer and strength coach.

The star pitcher repeatedly denied the accusations in interviews under oath with congressional staffers and again publicly under oath in a special hearing of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee that pitted him against McNamee.

"I have never used steroids, human growth hormone or any other type of illegal performance-enhancing drugs," Clemens said at the start of the hearing.

(With Newsday)