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Clemens not upset with the Yankees, but lacks desire to play


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Roger Clemens said Wednesday that reports he is unhappy with the New York Yankees are untrue.

Clemens

"The reports were false as many have been over the course," Clemens told Houston's KRIV-TV about reports he was unhappy the team didn't include him among those honored during the final game at Yankee Stadium. "I don't pay attention to them. We are trying to do things the right way.

"They had some story that I was watching it. I was actually in Florida in the instructional league at the time the game was going on, the last Yankee Stadium game was happening, I was on a plane flight coming home. So I never saw any of the game itself," he said.

Clemens did not play during the 2008 season and said he's not interesting in playing again.

"Right now I don't have the desire to do so," Clemens told KRIV. "I'm enjoying what I'm doing, the number of things I'm doing around town, just enjoying that.

"I don't know if I will ever say no. I would have to know that I could perform at a high level and that my body would be able to hold up," he added.

Clemens has a personal services contract with the Houston Astros, which takes effect when he officially retires. However, GM Ed Wade said the Astros don't have plans to use Clemens as part of their training process right now.

"He has a huge amount of knowledge of the game, and at some point in time he will be able to lend that expertise," Wade told KRIV. "We have a full-time staff that works with our players and if you have confidence in your staff then you oughtta let them do the job and not fragment the situation."

Clemens said he would be interested in working with some of the Astros' minor leaguers this offseason, as he has done in the past.

"If they ask me to be a part of that I will be there with open arms," Clemens said. "I'm there with Koby [his son, a catcher in the Astros' minor league system] and when we run around, and the other pitchers or players are around, it's great because I think the more I'm around, the more comfortable they are about asking questions, which is great. I enjoy helping because they are chasing their dreams."

However, Clemens, an 11-time All-Star and seven-time Cy Young Award winner, said he doesn't feel he can play any longer.

"I think I said that a long time ago that I'm not a quitter," Clemens told KRIV. "I'm never going to quit. I think I'm just going to walk away. I think I will never be too far from the game.

"There's a time when everybody has to walk away from it, when you feel you can't do it any longer," he said.

He refused to discuss his legal issues.

"We're doing things the right way, rocking and rolling, doing it the right way," Clemens told the TV station. "We're not going to get involved with all of the stuff that's out there and that's it.

"I'm not going to discuss it one bit. We're handling it the right way," he said.

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