MLB

After acquittal, Yankees should open door for return of Roger Clemens

By necessity, the Yankees have played an unusually passive role in the Roger Clemens imbroglio.

They stood by and watched as former Red Sox director George Mitchell made Clemens the star of his report and, more specifically, highlighted Clemens’ Yankees years. Employees from Andy Pettitte to Brian Cashman to former security guru Jerry Laveroni participated in the witness conga line, all of them helping Clemens and hurting his accuser, former Yankees assistant strength coach Brian McNamee.

But now that it’s over, now that Clemens has done everything humanly possible to clear his name and prevailed, it’s time for the Yankees to be their usually active selves.

It’s time for them to welcome Clemens back into the organization as the distinguished alumnus he is.

“You’d like to see all the players that have been through stuff, and haven’t been around, maybe come back,” Joe Girardi told The Post yesterday before the Yankees continued their home series with the Braves. “You want to see your buddies that you played with. You want to see [Clemens] back.”

We’re not advocating any sort of special day for Clemens, whom a jury acquitted Monday on charges of perjury, false statements and obstruction of Congress. We’re just saying, invite him to Old-Timers’ Day. Let him have the standing ovation that has eluded him, as his legal problems began just months after throwing his last major league pitch (as a Yankee) on Oct. 7, 2007.

Shoot, given that Old-Timers’ Day is coming right up — July 1, before the Yankees play the White Sox — if they want to wait until next year, that’s fine, too.

Team insiders say that no definitive decision on Clemens has been made in the wake of Monday’s verdict. But really, what’s preventing it now? McNamee’s defamation suit against Clemens? As the kids say, “LOL.” That’s a whole lot of nothing.

I’ve been surprised these last few years how many Yankees fans seem to have acquired a case of amnesia regarding Clemens’ contributions to the Joe Torre years. Maybe it’s because of Clemens’ Red Sox ties. Perhaps it’s because people are just that judgmental and moralistic.

Regardless, after a shaky (for him) 1999, he woke up (perhaps by using illegal performance-enhancing drugs, but you can’t prove that) in the middle of 2000 and served as a frontline starting rotation through 2003. He even helped in his return of 2007, also known as “Un-Retirement IV.”

He earned a reputation as an excellent teammate, one who held others accountable for their emotional and physical investments and who enjoyed coming up with nicknames and in-jokes.

“Roger loves being around his teammates,” Girardi said. “He always was like that. Through all that toughness that he showed on the mound, he’s got quite a sense of humor.”

The Astros, the other team with which Clemens hoped to forge a post-retirement identity, already are on record as wanting to reconnect with the seven-time Cy Young Award winner.

“Any time you get a Roger Clemens in the mix, you’d have to welcome him back with open arms,” new Astros owner Jim Crane told reporters.

Clemens has a 10-year personal services contract with the Astros, as per an agreement he signed as a player, and he also lives in the Houston area. If and when he decides to dive back into the baseball world — a very safe bet — the Astros will occupy much of his time.

With the Yankees, Clemens would need to check in just one day a year. He deserves to hang out on Old-Timers’ Day with Girardi, to whom he loved pitching; and Derek Jeter, who stood by Clemens the whole time; and fellow retired guys like Paul O’Neill and Jorge Posada.

Andy Pettitte? I’m pretty sure Yankee Stadium is big enough to hold both of them without their having to crossing paths. Pettitte is a big boy. He can handle it.

Everyone can handle the truth. That no matter what he did during his pinstriped years, he helped the Yankees greatly. That he played mostly during an era in which there were no bona fide rules preventing illegal PED rules. And that, once the rules changed, he passed all of his drug tests.

The Yankees are forever selling their own impressive nostalgia. Why not add Clemens to the sales rack?

kdavidoff@nypost.com