Photo of Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte by AP/Chris O'Meara

Andy Pettitte has always wanted the ball in his hand with the game on the line...until now. Faced with the prospect of having to publicly contradict his friend, Roger Clemens, Pettitte asked to be excused from tomorrow’s hearing in Congress. Representative Tom Davis told Newsday last night that the Pettitte deposition matched McNamee’s in “most details” but Roger Clemens’ deposition says Pettitte is mistaken. As a result, Pettitte has been excused, along with Chuck Knoblauch and Kurt Radomski setting up a one-on-one showdown between Roger Clemens and Brian McNamee.

Pettitte’s testimony is a huge blow to Clemens who has spent the past week meeting with members of the committee and signing autographs. In addition, Clemens’ attorney, Rusty Hardin, has received a warning from Congress to stop trying to intimidate witnesses.

Meanwhile, John Rocker has gotten into the fun claiming that a doctor from the players’ union told him, A-Rod, Rafael Palmeiro, and Ivan Rodriguez how to use steroids safely in 2002. Rocker is an idiot, but baseball bungled this from the beginning and as a result no claim however outrageous can be dismissed out of hand.

UPDATE: A source close to Rep. Tom Davis has said that the Congressman was "misquoted and misunderstood" in the Newsday story. We will find out tomorrow when Pettitte's affidavit becomes part of the public record.