In the shadow of Mariano Rivera’s retirement it appears that another great New York Yankee is riding off into the sunset. Various reports have stated that Andy Pettitte will announce his retirement on Friday afternoon. This will be the second time in three years that Pettitte will be retiring from the game. Apparently the 41-year-old pitcher will walk away because his body did not handle the grind of the grueling 162-game schedule very well. Pettitte’s final two starts of his accomplished career will appropriately come at Yankee Stadium on Mariano Rivera Day this Sunday and in Houston where he grew up.
Pettitte came back from his first retirement in 2011 and has pitched very well the last two seasons, sporting a 3.60 ERA with 6.8 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9 in 244 2/3 innings, adding 15 wins.
Pettitte is a three-time All-Star with 255 Major League wins. He has finished in the Top 5 in Cy Young voting on four occasions. The reliable lefty was always called upon to pitch in pivotal Game 3’s in the playoffs throughout the Yankees dynasty. He has the record for postseason wins with 19 and helped the Yankees win five World Series championships. Despite his worthy statistics Pettitte might find a difficult time making it into the Hall of Fame because he was named in the Mitchell Report for HGH use.
