Clemens posts video denying use of steroids - Mitchell Report claims about him are 'simply not true,' he says. He'll talk on '60 Minutes.'
Roger Clemens used the Internet to issue his latest denial that he ever used steroids, saying in a video that was posted Sunday on his foundation's website and YouTube.com that the parts of the Mitchell Report that pertained to him are "simply not true."
Looking directly into the camera, the seven-time Cy Young Award winner said, "Let me be clear: The answer is no, I did not use steroids, human growth hormone, and I've never done so."
Clemens also said in the video, which lasts one minute and 48 seconds, that he will grant his first interview on the matter to Mike Wallace of CBS' "60 Minutes."
Clemens' attorney, Rusty Hardin, said Clemens would speak on camera with Wallace in the next week or two and that the interview would air Jan. 6. The plans were confirmed by a CBS spokesman.
Hardin said that when the episode is done airing in the Central time zone, Clemens will hold a news conference in the Houston area, probably at his residence.
Until Sunday, Clemens hadn't spoken publicly about the accusations made about him in former Sen. George Mitchell's report on performance-enhancing drugs in baseball. He denied using drugs in a written statement he issued last week through his agent, Randy Hendricks.
According to Mitchell's report, former trainer Brian McNamee said he injected Clemens with steroids or human growth hormone on numerous occasions while Clemens was pitching for the Toronto Blue Jays in 1998 and the New York Yankees in 2000 and 2001. McNamee spoke to Mitchell as part of an agreement with federal prosecutors.
"I did not provide Brian McNamee with any drugs to inject into my body," Clemens said in the video. "Brian McNamee did not inject steroids or human growth hormones into my body, either when I played in Toronto for the Blue Jays or the New York Yankees."
In the video, Clemens mentioned a report in The Times that ran last year. Citing anonymous sources, The Times reported that Clemens was among the players accused of using performance-enhancing drugs by former major league pitcher Jason Grimsley in a federal affidavit. The affidavit was unsealed Thursday, and Clemens' name wasn't in it. The Times ran a correction.
"I faced this last year when the L.A. Times reported that I used steroids," he said in the video. "I said it was not true then, and now the whole world knows it's not true, now that that's come out."
- Major League Baseball turns to Google on steroids issue Sep 17, 2008
- Clemens issues a strong denial Dec 19, 2007
- Clemens, McNamee face off on the Hill Feb 14, 2008
