KISSIMMEE, FLA. ? Roger Clemens will pitch to minor leaguers at the Houston Astros’ spring training camp today.

The 43-year-old Clemens wants to pitch in the World Baseball Classic, then decide whether to retire or play a 23rd season, said Koby Clemens, his oldest son and a third baseman in the Astros’ farm system.

Koby Clemens said his father was due to arrive in Florida on Sunday night and planned to pitch to minor leaguers in a simulated game this morning.

The Astros also said the seven-time Cy Young winner would be at camp today.

Clemens, a free agent, wasn’t offered salary arbitration by the Astros and cannot re-sign with them until May 1. He could join another team before that, and Texas, Boston and the New York Yankees reportedly are interested.

Houston general manager Tim Purpura said the Astros got permission from Major League Baseball to allow the Rocket to pitch at their spring training complex.

Clemens led the major leagues with a 1.87 earned-run average last year, but was plagued by back and hamstring problems late in the season. He limped off the field after two innings in the World Series opener against the White Sox.

Koby Clemens said his dad was ready to retire in December, but his family talked him out of it.

“We were all like, ‘You should wait and allow yourself to rest your body,'” Koby said. “He was still kind of hurting, kind of tired. He was like, ‘I don’t want to do this again.'”

Many of the Astros expect Clemens to play for them again this season. Manager Phil Garner said Sunday he hadn’t asked Clemens about what he’d do, but thought the Astros offered the best situation – a shortened season close to his family and his home.

“He knows how much we would like to have him back,” Garner said. “I think this is the perfect spot for him.”

In Tucson, Ariz., angry and disgusted with the latest comments from former slugger Frank Thomas, Chicago White Sox general manager Kenny Williams fired back Sunday, calling the two-time MVP “an idiot.”

“He’s an idiot. He’s selfish. That’s why we don’t miss him,” Williams said, responding to a Thomas interview that appeared in The Daily Southtown, a newspaper in the Chicago suburb of Tinley Park, Ill.

Since signing with the Oakland A’s last month, Thomas has made it clear that he didn’t appreciate the way his 16-year run with the White Sox ended, saying that chairman Jerry Reinsdorf didn’t call him to tell him he wasn’t coming back.

Thomas also repeated that had he known last fall the team wasn’t going to bring him back, he wouldn’t have participated in a couple of ceremonial functions during the postseason.

In Scottsdale, Ariz., Barry Bonds could play his first spring training game in two years Friday against the Milwaukee Brewers, although San Francisco manager Felipe Alou said he didn’t know whether he’d use the slugger as an outfielder or a designated hitter.

Alou said Sunday that it was unlikely that Bonds would travel to Phoenix on Thursday to play the exhibition opener against Milwaukee, but probably would play the next day if his right knee felt up to it.

In Viera, Fla., Washington Nationals pitcher Brian Lawrence was diagnosed with a torn labrum in his right shoulder. The injury was discovered in an MRI conducted Friday night, team doctor Bruce Thomas said Saturday.

Thomas said the best-case scenario had Lawrence returning after midseason; at worst, the right-hander will be out until September.

In Bradenton, Fla., the Pittsburgh Pirates are worried that a blood clot close to starter Kip Wells’ right arm could jeopardize his season.

General manager Dave Littlefield described the clot as a “100 percent blockage” of the axillary artery under the clavicle, the primary vessel that carries blood from the chest to the arms.

If Wells, 28, has surgery, he likely would miss five to eight months of playing time.

In Fort Lauderdale, Fla., the Baltimore Orioles signed veteran free-agent outfielder Richard Hidalgo to a minor-league contract.

Hidalgo, 30, who is expected to report to the Orioles spring training facility Monday, batted .221 with 16 home runs and 43 RBIs in 88 games for Texas last season.

Orioles All-Star Melvin Mora pulled out of the World Baseball Classic after being asked to play center field for Venezuela, rather than third base.