The New York Yankees and pitcher Andy Pettitte just can’t quit one another.
CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman reported that “Andy Pettitte and the Yankees are finalizing an agreement for one year at about $11 million for him to return to the Bronx.”
After another fine season for the 40-year-old pitcher, Pettitte decided against retirement and the Yankees gladly signed him to a new contract, hoping to rekindle some of Pettitte’s magic from his limited starts in 2012.
In 75.1 innings, Pettitte went 5-4 with a 2.87 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and 69 strikeouts. He battled an ankle injury that kept him limited to just 12 starts, but he was crucial for the Yankees down the stretch, going 2-1 in his September return to the club with a 1.62 ERA and 10 strikeouts.
With his return, the Yankees should have a solid rotation. You already know about that CC Sabathia guy. Like Pettitte, Hiroki Kuroda decided to return, signing a one-year, $15 million deal. Michael Pineda may not be back in time for the start of the season, but he’ll also be expected to be a stud when he returns.
And between Phil Hughes, Ivan Nova and David Phelps, the Yankees can nicely round out the back end of the rotation.
The question remains whether or not Pettitte can really be as effective as he was a year ago. While Jamie Moyer is an inspiration to us all—and Pettitte gets by on location and guile with the best of them—he’s on the wrong side of 40 and you could hardly blame him if he doesn’t have enough in the tank at this point.
Plus, can he stay healthy for the duration of the season? Can he even stay healthy long enough to give the team more than 12 starts?
The Yankees are an aging club on the precipice of needing a fairly massive overhaul. If the old guys like Pettitte don’t come through, young and improving clubs like the Toronto Blue Jays, Baltimore Orioles and Tampa Bay Rays will leave them in the dust.
And no, I didn’t include the Boston Red Sox on that list. The one consolation for Yankees fans, if 2013 turns into a poor season, is that the BoSox won’t be very good, either.
Still, I wouldn’t bet against Pettitte or this Yankees team. One of the reasons they can’t quit one another is that their times together over the years have resulted in great success.
We’ll see if the magic remains for one more season.
Hit me up on Twitter—my tweets never want to retire either.
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