Andy Pettitte takes the mound in Congress

Andy Pettitte took the mound yesterday, as the Yankee pitcher threw over 2 1/2 hours to Congress.  Neither the Congressional staff, nor Pettitte revealed the score when the hurler finished his inquisition.  To the New York Times:

Pettitte emerged from his deposition with a serious, somewhat grave expression, accompanied by his wife and three lawyers. Asked if he had any comment, Pettitte said, “No.” Everyone else in the group kept silent as they pressed through a crowd of journalists between the House oversight committee offices and an elevator.

How important might Pettitte's testimony be?  He remains a very key player in determining the credibility of the Mitchell report, looking at the use of PEDs (including HGH) among pro athletes, and judging the merits of Roger Clemens's -- his Yankee teammate -- pleas of innocent.

Pettitte, more than anyone else invited to testify, could know about the main subject of the investigation: Clemens, his longtime friend, adviser, teammate and workout partner. They were teammates on four World Series teams in New York and one in Houston, and they shared a personal trainer, Brian McNamee, who said he injected them both with human growth hormone and Clemens with steroids.

Pettite was also named in the Mitchell Report was an HGH user.  The Yankee admitted to HGH use, then moved on.  Meanwhile Roger Clemens denied any PED use (despite evidence of even more extensive juice than Pettitte) and remains front and center on sports pages today.  There is evidence that this situation caused a rift between the two pitchers:

The relationship between the two men is strained, though. Pettitte has admitted using H.G.H. and Clemens has denied it; Pettitte hired separate lawyers after having shared Hardin; and Pettitte is being brought before Congress because of Clemens’s denials. Friends of Pettitte’s have let it be known, according to news media reports, that Pettitte and Clemens are not as close as they were made out to be and that they did not appreciate Clemens’s tactics in attacking the Mitchell report.

Clemens takes the mound today, as he testifies in front of the Congressional staff.