WASHINGTON (AP) — Prosecutors argued Wednesday that several major league baseball players should be allowed to testify at Roger Clemens’ impending criminal trial about their own drug use.

Clemens wants the judge to prevent his former New York Yankee teammates from testifying they got performance-enhancing drugs from team trainer Brian McNamee. McNamee says he also gave steroids and human growth hormone to Clemens, but the former pitching star denies the allegation.

Clemens argued in court filings last week that testimony from other players that they got drugs from McNamee has nothing to do with him and could lead to “guilt by association.” But prosecutors responded that they need the testimony from players like Andy Pettitte, Chuck Knoblauch and Mike Stanton to show that McNamee had access to drugs and knew how to inject them.

Clemens is scheduled to go on trial starting next week on charges he lied in February 2008 when he denied before a congressional committee that he had used performance-enhancing drugs.