EDISON, N.J. (AP) – Roger Clemens wants to be clear about two things: He’s not doing this for the dollars, and he can’t use his age as an excuse.

“Mr. Steinbrenner, he doesn’t care how old I am,” Clemens said Monday. “He wants me to come back and play like I have in the past.”

Clemens announced Sunday from owner George Steinbrenner’s box that he was rejoining the New York Yankees. The Rocket has won seven Cy Young awards and two World Series rings, and now faces the challenge of getting his 44-year-old body ready to pitch again.

“If you think it’s about money, you’re greatly mistaken. I’m not going to put my body through the paces I put my body through to earn a few more dollars,” Clemens said at a charity golf tournament.

Describing the decision to play for the Yankees, Clemens said it was a situation that unfolded very quickly.

“I didn’t know the details of my contract sitting down yesterday,” he said. “That’s how quick the decision was made to do this.”

Having played for Steinbrenner before, Clemens said all the right things about why he is returning to the Bronx.

“You’re talking seven long years that we haven’t been in the winners’ circle,” he said.

It’s his past performances that earned Clemens a return trip to New York. He won titles in 1999 and 2000, then helped the Yankees reach the World Series in 2001 and 2003. They lost that final appearance to the Florida Marlins in what was billed as Clemens’ farewell to baseball.

But when the Yanks let pitcher Andy Pettitte go to Houston as a free agent, Clemens changed his mind and followed his close friend to the Astros, where he pitched three more seasons.

The Yankees will pay about $26 million in salary and luxury tax in a one-year deal for the Rocket.

It’s still uncertain when Clemens will make his debut this season. He said that will depend on how his preparations and conditioning go.

He’ll start out in the minor leagues with workouts in Lexington, Ky., where his son, Koby, is playing with a Houston Astros’ farm team.

Clemens is second on the career strikeouts list with 4,604 and has 348 career wins, putting him eighth on the list. Last season with Houston, he was 7-6 with a 2.30 ERA.

When asked whether this would be his last season in baseball, Clemens smiled a bit and declined to say.

“You know I’d be lying to you all if I said it again, because I’m not good at it,” he said. “It’s great to be able to make a great living, but when it’s all said and done it’s about how many rings that you have.”

AP-ES-05-07-07 1909EDT