But it is one Pettitte put himself in when he decided to take HGH to help heal his elbow in 2002 and then again in 2004 when he found he had a torn flexor tendon that would require surgery, one start into his three-year deal with the Houston Astros.
Pettitte acknowledged that McNamee phoned him a week before the Mitchell Report was released to warn him of his inclusion in the report. McNamee named him and Clemens as players he had injected with HGH and, in Clemens's case, with steroids, too.
Pettitte sat with Yankees general manager Brian Cashman and first-year manager Joe Girardi, while three longtime teammates - Jorge Posada, Derek Jeter, and Mariano Rivera - also attended in a show of support. Pettitte's lawyers were also in attendance and advised him not to address anything pertaining to the deposition he gave to Congressional lawyers.
Pettitte is aware he might have to testify if the government brings a perjury case against Clemens, but he didn't seem to fear that, or the fan reaction he is likely to receive in venues hostile to the Yankees, such as Boston.
He based that on the fact that he's already given testimony to Congress, and he would be saying the same things if a case should mount against Clemens.
"I think Roger knows how I feel about him," said Pettitte. "He knows I've admired him and continue to admire him. He's a great friend to me."
Pettitte acknowledged that the friendship had to be strained simply because they have not spoken in a while, but he said he hoped to be Clemens's friend after all was said and done.
"This has been a horrible situation for me," he said. "I'm hoping and praying I don't have to do anything else with this."
Pettitte doesn't believe he will be suspended for his HGH use by commissioner Bud Selig since it was not a banned substance in baseball until January 2005.
Pettitte said he will apologize to his teammates for the distraction he caused and already has apologized to the Steinbrenner family for "embarrassing" the organization. Supposedly, the Steinbrenners told Pettitte they were behind him "100 percent" and that he hadn't brought the organization any embarrassment. Pettitte said he disagreed with the owners on that point.
