Feb 16, 2008 2:43 pm US/Eastern
Yogi Berra Museum Removes Clemens Jersey
LITTLE FALLS, N.J. (AP) ―
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Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Roger Clemens' jersey may hang in Cooperstown some day, but for now it won't hang in the Yogi Berra Museum.
Museum director David Kaplan said on Saturday the museum had removed Clemens' jersey last week from a display honoring the Yankee teams of the late 1990s that won four World Series championships in five years.
Kaplan said the decision to remove the jersey was not made to generate publicity, but acknowledged that it was made in response to allegations of steroid use by Clemens that culminated in last Wednesday's Congressional hearing where the seven-time Cy Young Award winner testified.
"It was the fact that there are a lot of unresolved issues involving Roger and it was difficult for us to give answers to the kids coming through the museum," Kaplan said.
The Yogi Berra Museum and Learning Center, which opened in 1998, offers several educational programs for youths including one that focuses on sports medicine and nutrition and examines the use of performance-enhancing drugs.
Clemens' jersey had been displayed alongside former teammates Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera. Clemens pitched for the Yankees from 1999 to 2003 and was a member of the 1999 and 2000 championship teams.
Jeter's and Rivera's jerseys will stay in the display, Kaplan said. Both were members of the Yankees from 1995.
"In light of what's been happening, we just thought the display would be well-served by having the guys who were there from the beginning of the run," Kaplan said.
Kaplan said he decided to remove the jersey with chief operating officer Art Berke. They notified Berra of their decision and the former Yankee great "was OK with it," according to Kaplan.
Clemens and Berra are friends, and the former pitcher has played in a celebrity golf event that raises money for the museum, Kaplan said.
The jersey removal was originally reported in The New York Times in Saturday's editions.
(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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