Clemens sues ex-trainer over steroid allegations

HOUSTON (Reuters) - Pitching star Roger Clemens has sued his former trainer for making false and defamatory statements about his steroid use that was chronicled by Major League Baseball's Mitchell Report.

The lawsuit, filed in state court in Texas late on Sunday, said Brian McNamee's claims that he repeatedly injected Clemens with steroids and human growth hormone are not true and exposed Clemens to "public hatred, contempt, ridicule and financial injury."

The lawsuit, which seeks an unspecified amount of damages, also claims that McNamee was threatened with jail if he failed to link Clemens, a seven-time winner of the Cy Young Award as his league's best pitcher, and steroid use.

A lawyer for McNamee was not immediately available to comment.

Clemens, who has been fighting to defend his reputation, told CBS News's "60 Minutes" in a taped interview aired on Sunday that McNamee's allegations were "ridiculous" and that he had been broadsided by the claims.

Nine pages of baseball's report last month by former Senator George Mitchell into use of performance enhancing drugs detailed McNamee's testimony that he had injected Clemens with steroids and human growth hormone from 1998 to 2001.

"Never happened. Never happened," Clemens, winner of 354 career games, said in the television interview conducted nine days ago at his home near Houston.

McNamee, caught up in a federal steroids distribution probe, was told by federal prosecutors they would not charge him if he told the truth to the Mitchell committee about his involvement with steroids.

Clemens said McNamee gave him injections of painkiller lidocaine and the vitamin B-12 during his playing career but stressed he had never used banned substances.

Clemens, 45, continued to thrive in his late 30s and early 40s when most players lose effectiveness and retire.

He pitched last season for the Yankees in his 24th big league season. He has also pitched for the Boston Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays and Houston Astros.

(Reporting by Anna Driver; Editing by Bill Trott)