Earlier this week, Andy Pettitte announced his retirement, bringing an end to months of speculation. Well, for the most part anyway. Here's some news on the left-hander and other Yankees tidbits..
- Pettitte isn't planning on a comeback but he won't completely rule out another go-round after a year off, tweets Marc Carig of the Star-Ledger.
- For Pettitte retiring was a tough decision, but ultimately the right one, says Wallace Matthews of ESPNNewYork.com (via Twitter).
- The Yankees have shown patience as of late but Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated wonders if Pettitte's retirement will make the club antsy. Their newfound restraint has them 0-for-2 on Heyman's scoreboard when considering their miss on Cliff Lee.
- GM Brian Cashman insists that patience is still the name of the game, writes Carig.
- Bernie Williams is one Yankee who is ready to shut the door on his playing days for good, writes MLB.com's Bryan Hoch. The 42-year-old centerfielder plans to make his retirement official at some point in 2011. Williams hit .297/.381/.477 in 16 big league seasons for the Bombers.
- Eric Chavez told Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle (via Twitter) that if he makes the Yankees' major league roster, he knows he'll be playing in support of two phenomenal corner infielders. Slusser tweets that it It sounds as though the Yankees made best offer of the teams that showed interest in the veteran. The Dodgers, Blue Jays, and Mariners were among the other clubs known to be in talks with Chavez.
I think being out of the league about five years is as official a retirement as any Bern.
Well, by that logic, the Mets should stop playing baseball? The Yankees screwed Bernie, he didn’t leave on his own
I’m sorry but after you’ve made $100M from playing for a team, you are no longer in the category of having been “screwed” by said team.
Yes. The Mets should take a cue from Andy and just take a year off.
And how did the Yankees ‘screw’ Bernie? By giving him one more year than he deserved? Sounds like how they ‘screwed’ Torre by offering to make him the highest-paid manager in the game, even without the ‘bonuses’.
He got $103M from the Yankees, dude.
Yeah, and they offered him a minor league contract knowing he wouldn’t take it, and that he would never play for another team – they were right on both counts. That’s how they screwed him. They should’ve let him go out on his own terms, instead they chose to force him out of baseball.
He didn’t want to make the deal, that’s his choice. The yanks are a business they ran the team like a business.
Dude, stop saying what I’m saying right before I say it. It’s rude.
What can I say, I have a knack for being rude at the right time.
You seem to have a knack for being rude at the right time.
Nah, now I’m just screwing around.
It’s a business, and Bernie could have played for another team. You know, for spite.
funny because these are the same people saying the yankees needed to get younger, but keep Bernie on past his expiration date. can’t have it both ways.
Pretty sure the Mets have never left the league.
You totally sure bout that
He’s not officially retired?
No. He has made it known that he wanted a shot to come back. One thing that hurt him was that he won’t come back on a minor league contract–which is what the Yankees offered after his last season.
He’s been wanting to play, but he won’t accept anything less than a major league contract. The Yankees offered him a minor league deal after his last season, but he turned it down.
Pettitte isn’t planning on a comeback but he won’t completely rule out another go-round after a year off, tweets Marc Carig of the Star-Ledger.
– If he comes back, that is when you Yankee haters can officially call him Brett Favre.
Hold on I just recieved a text from him.
SMS or MMS?
I look at Pettitte’s retirement as an oppurtunity. An oppurtunity for the Yankees to give one of the youngsters a shot and see what they can do over a year. Can the Yankees miss the playoff, absoloutley, but you never know if these hyped young hurlers might be a superstar in the making.
I hope we get to see Brackman sometime this year, and Banuelos and maybe Betances in 2012
I don’t even know why the Yankees are wasting their time with Eric Chavez. All he does for the Yankees is take away backup playing time from Eduardo Nunez. I mean, come on! The guy can’t even put his glove on without hurting himself! Maybe I’m overreacting, but this just looks to be a watered down Nick Johnson move of 2011 for New York.
Chavez can’t be any worse than Ramiro Pena lol. Who says the Yankees can’t use both Nunez and Chavez?
As far as I know, the bench consists of Nunez, Pena, Cervelli and Andruw Jones.
Wouldn’t you like to know the name of the guy who spat on Cliff Lee’s wife? I know, I know, that had nothing to do with Lee’s decision not to go to NY.
When they made the decision on Bernie they needed the roster spot and he didn’t fit into their plans. He could have accepted the minor league deal and took the chance of trying to make the team, and failing. Neither he, nor the Yankees wanted the back page of the tabloids to read YANKEES RELEASE BERNIE WILLIAMS or BERNIE CUT. In a way it all goes back to George Steinbrenner and the way he would covet players. He coveted Randy Johnson and signed him, even though he was clearly on the down side. Ditto in acquiring Kevin Brown. When the Yankees needed to move Bernie to left field, instead they signed Jason Giambi, another George favorite. Tino was coming off a 34 homer 110+ RBI year and Nick Johnson (we didn’t know he was made of China then) in the wings. We needed a centerfielder (face it Bernie was terrible his last 2 or 3 years out there) I loved Giambi, but I’m not sure he did any more for us than Tino might have. Cash wanted to sign Kenny Lofton and wait for the right deal for a bat. He wanted Vladimir and even thought of Bernie as a DH. Keep in mind that when we played the Angels that year in the play-offs the order was in the Angel clubhouse, “if the ball is in Bernie’s hands, go to the next base”. We had to settle for Raul Mondesi as our “bat” during the season because the front office would let the team move Bernie from centerfield (ahh tradition, Dimaggio, Mantle, Murcer) The deal Cash really wanted to make was for Vladimir, who could have played a year, maybe 2 in Center. That wasn’t going to happen as long as the heads above Cash meddled.
Look at all the players who were Yankee nemesis, and then became Yankees, either after their effectiveness was gone, or when we really didn’t need them. (even go back to Ken Phelps, whom we gave up Jay Buhner for. Phelps beat us on a couple late inning homers)
If Bernie was so sure he could have played and made the team, he should have accepted the ml deal and showed his stuff. He let pride retire himself. He knew he was done and when the Yankees gave him the opportunity to go out gracefully, he didn’t take it. The headline should have been “Bernie to be player development advisor. Bernie Williams Day planned for July”
I saw Bernie play in Albany, he was behind Gerald Williams when he came here. He was so green, but the fact he was a great athlete was so obvious, you just knew his time would come. He and Gerald were best friends and envisioned themselves side by side in the NY outfield. But when Bernie developed and blossomed it happened fast and it was obvious his potential knew no bounds, unfortunately full major league player maturity didn’t happen until he was 27. That was when it all came together for him, the athlete became the player. But, he was somewhat fragile and rarely played over 150 games.
He was an athlete whom they developed into a player. It took a long time, almost 10 years from when he was signed and to when he became a regular. I wish him the best and when he finally says “I’m retired” I hope the Yankees DO have a day for him.
I wouldn’t expect much out of Eric Chavez. It seems like he was looking more at the money up front, than an opportunity to play. Casey Blake has been in decline, and is right handed. James Looney has not lived up to the expectations the Dodgers had for him and was on the block most of the off season. In Seattle, they have a rookie in Smoak at first, and a singles hitter in Figgins at third. In Toronto, they are just looking for a way to move Bautista to the outfield. In New York, they only have Teixiera and
A-Rod playing ahead of him.
Hard to have confidence in him, when he has none in himself.