Maybe Roger Clemens could be an effective speaker against the ills of performance-enhancing drug use to high schoolers in the same way that Pete Rose could against gambling.

Maybe, but for as long as Clemens adamantly maintains that he did not receive injections of human growth hormones from a former trainer while he was in Toronto, he is a lousy choice to speak to high school athletes or their coaches.

Yet, The New York Times reported earlier this week that the Texas High School Baseball Coaches Association has not rescinded its invitation to Clemens to speak at its convention next Saturday about his workout regimen, and that Clemens still wants to come.

“We took a wait-and-see approach,” Jim Long, the group’s president, said in a telephone interview with The Times. “He adamantly wants to come, and we really don’t have any reason not to have him.”

Actually, Mr. Long, you really do have a reason not to have Clemens, who appears to be as truthful under these circumstances as Rose was for all those years about his wagering on baseball games. Texas happens to be one of a handful of states that conducts steroid testing for its high school athletes, and giving the Rocket a platform with the cloud hanging over him seems irresponsible and certainly sends a mixed message to the kids themselves.

Sure, Clemens may be telling the truth, and may be able to prove it someday. If that day comes, baseball officials and former Senator George Mitchell, who led baseball's investigation into performance-enhancing drug usage can offer an apology.

For now, however, Clemens shouldn't spreading the gospel of good, clean workout techniques to high school athletes and their coaches until we're reasonably sure that he's speaking from a place of truth.