Sweeny Says: Yankees Counting On 'Dandy' Pettitte
By Sweeny Murti
Here's the good news: Andy Pettitte is on the road back. The lefty threw another good bullpen session on Sunday in Chicago, about 35 pitches at a decent intensity level. Pettitte finally felt like he could push off a little bit, especially on some curveballs. It's been six weeks since his groin injury, and now Pettitte estimates that he could be back in as little as two weeks. Although it will likely be a tad longer than that.
Extra Audio: Listen to Andy Pettitte's comments following Sunday's 35-pitch bullpen session
Now here's the bad news: If Pettitte comes back anywhere in that 2-3 week range, he could get 3 to 4 starts in the remainder of the regular season. Depending on when he actually returns, every one of his starts could fall against Tampa Bay and Boston. The Yankees play 13 of their final 19 against these two rivals, beginning on September 13th.
Not that Andy Pettitte can't handle big games. Clearly that's not the point here. The point is that the Yankees will not have the luxury of easing Pettitte back into shape. It will be almost as if they're asking him to jump right into the playoffs (because that's how intense those Rays and Red Sox series will be) after not having pitched for the past two months.
Think about it. The last real game Pettitte pitched was on July 8th! And now with the Yankees in the heat of a pennant race, unable to fully count on any pitcher not named Sabathia, they will need Andy Pettitte to be his usual Mr. October self. Sorry Reggie, but you get the point.
Pettitte has stepped up for the Yankees many times before. Before the groin injury in July he was having the best year of his career. Now the Yankees need him to jump right back into form and help lead this team into another postseason.
Last year the Yankees had the good fortune to put some distance between themselves and the Red Sox early enough in September, so they could ease off the pedal with their starters. This year they're going to have to fight to the finish. And they hope Andy will be as dandy as he has ever been.
Sweeny Murti
Yankees@wfan.com
www.twitter.com/YankeesWFAN
