What do the Yankees do with Andy Pettitte? Do they re-sign him, do they let him walk? It’s a tough call if you’re Yankee management, but given Andy’s track record, why not give him another chance?
Pettitte went 2-7 with an ERA north of 6.00 last season in his last 11 starts, and he missed his last start of the season because of elbow soreness. So does he really deserve a chance to rebound from that horrid second half?
He does, because he’s Andy Pettitte. What does that mean? It means that despite Pettitte being on the downside of his career, the Yanks should give him a one-year deal worth around $10 or $11 million, because he was their big-game pitcher for so many years.
Yes, I realize those days were a long time ago, but a lefty who can win 12-15 games surely deserves a chance in the rotation, a rotation that is full of question marks.
Mike Mussina is almost certain to retire, maybe as early as this week, so bringing Andy back won’t cause an overflow of starting pitchers in the rotation. I believe Andy still has some juice (no pun intended) in that left arm of his and can help the Bombers make a run into October.
He can be penciled in as the fourth starter, assuming the Yankees accomplish their offseason wish list of obtaining CC Sabathia and another high-end starter to go along with current ace Chien-Ming Wang.
Pettitte filed for free agency today, thus, for the time being, ending his tenure with the Yankees. He has stated on more than one occasion that he would only return to play for the Yankees and not any other team.
“I let them know a few weeks ago I’d like to come back and play,” Pettitte said at Joe Torre’s annual Safe At Home Foundation dinner, which honored the 1998 World Champion Yankees. “My agent said he would call me if he had heard anything and he hasn’t heard anything.”
What are the Yankees waiting for? I think this really is a no-brainer, unless they are mulling what kind of deal they’re going to offer the lefty.
“I don’t want a multi-year deal. I only want one year,” he said. “I would love to hear if they wanted me back or not. I’m not even thinking money. I think I’ve made it perfectly clear what my intentions are and where I’d like to play baseball. Other than that I’ll have to wait and see what they’d like to do.”
Looks like Andy is making this very easy for GM Brian Cashman. He wants to play for the Yankees, one year, money isn’t an issue, so why the wait? I’m sure a deal will get done, I’ll be highly surprised if the Yanks turn the other cheek on this. It’s better than throwing the likes of Sidney Ponson and company out there.
Maybe with the new stadium opening this year they want to go in a different direction, which could be a possiblity, but I think the idea of having Andy in pinstripes is too strong to deny. I want to him back, and I’m sure many guys on the team and many fans want to see him back, so I hope this ends well for Pettitte and we see him back in the Bronx for 2009.
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