TAMPA, Fla. -- Minor League prospect James LaSala received more than 40 phone calls from his friends in the New York area on Monday night inquiring on any sighting of Roger Clemens.

The 23-year-old New Rochelle, N.Y., native, who is at extended Spring Training, informed them that he had indeed arrived and he had seen the Rocket.

Little did the Iona College graduate know, though, that he would be catching the 44-year-old legend on Tuesday.

"When I found out this morning, I got goose bumps for a while," said LaSala. "I grew up my whole life as a Yankees fan and to catch the greatest pitcher of all time is unbelievable."

LaSala said he had caught Chien-Ming Wang two weeks ago and described the experience as a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."

On Tuesday, with Yankees pitching prospects Phil Hughes, Jeff Karstens, Joba Chamberlain, Christian Garcia and Jose Veras looking on, LaSala caught Clemens for a bullpen session that lasted close to an hour.

After tossing 10 warmup pitches, Clemens threw 61 pitches in a simulated fashion to two other Minor Leaguers, right-handed-hitting Hector Gonzalez and left-handed batter Kevin Smith.

The Rocket looked sharp as he popped the glove several times on his two-seam and four-seam fastballs while mixing in his splitter and slider.

Later LaSala described his stuff as "nasty" and said Clemens "had great command."

Following the 71-pitch session, Clemens discussed mechanics with the pitchers in attendance. Then he took ground balls and practiced throwing to different bases with LaSala acting as the infielder.

At the end, Clemens thanked him for his help and offered to autograph some balls for him.

"This is the probably one of the greatest days of my life," said LaSala.