March 16, 2012
Friday – 3:15 pm
George M. Steinbrenner (Legends) Field
Tampa, Florida
LHP ANDY PETTITTE COMES OUT OF RETIREMENT
RETURNS TO “work” WITH THE NEW YORK YANKEES
Andy Pettitte in Deer Park Texas
Telephone Press Conference
Transcript of questions and answers:
Jason Zillo, New York Yankees
Director, Communications & Media Relations
I’ve got the (media) crew here. Thanks for joining us, I know there is a lot going on today.
Wall Street Journal:
How much was your family behind this decision. Were they fully supportive 100%?
Pettitte:
They are, they weren’t crazy about me retiring last year. I would’ve never have done this if, especially my wife, if she didn’t feel good about it. It’s been awsome being home, that’s for sure. Like I said, I’m sure we’ll get into it. When Cash called me and we kind of committed try tostart working out and kind of get this thing going. I couldn’t commit in January or February and I just was enjoying working out again. My family is behind this 100%, I’ve got a wife of absolute gold. She looks at me and she says you are the lead of the household and I am going to follow you and what ever you think is the right decision for us I’ll support you and I would love for you to do it if you want to do it, so it makes my life easier that’s for sure.
Star Ledger
Cash was telling us earlier that at one point he told you to shut it down from your throwing. Why did you keep throwing? You told him later on that you kept working, why?
Pettitte:
All I can say is, tha’s exactly right. I was working out, I spoke with Hal. In January we were talking and obviously we talked and I couldn’t commit and he said we’ve got to build a team and I said I understand that so we kind of agreed that something may not happen so keep working out and let’s see if you can get the juices flowing and if nothing happens then we’ll see if you’ll be able to commit in a few weeks and obviously something happened, they signed Kuroda and Michael and so when they signed those guys they called me and said hey you can shut it down. The money that we were going to use is gone and you know the spot in the rotation you know obviously we have 7 starters now cause at that time they had A.J. (Burnett) and they said so just go ahead and shut it down and so I said o.k. And after three or 4 days, I looked at my wife and I said Babe I was loving it working out, I couldn’t commit to them but I was loving working out and she said well just keep working out, so I kept working out and that’s when I went down to Spring Training and didn’t know if I would tell them or not but I told Hal and I told Cash that you all told me to quit working out but I was working out and still was throwing and I think I would love to play man and they were like oh my goodness. How are we going to work this out so that kind has been the process.
Newsday
You were just talking on TV about how important it was for you to be the man of the house and you wanted to spend a little time with your family. What was it that persuaded you to come back and do this and change the teams direction completely?
Pettitte:
I think that it was just like I said, as a man, my desire to work is back . I felt like last year the desire to go to the gym and do what needed to be done to go to the gym just wasn’t there and the commitment level wasn’t there and once Cash and I spoke in December and I started working out again I don’t know if it was because I had a year off or I had however many months, it was 8 months from waking up and training and getting ready for the season was back and just my desire to work it’s just back and I love working and for me I guess as a man that kind of right now is just overriding and I guess also having the opportunity to be here to coach my kids to see my boys play high school baseball those things that I was missing so much, I’ve had the opportunity to do that and not that I’m not going to miss that, I’m going to really miss it but just when you pray about something which I have done continuously on this and when I look at my wife and she says she feels good about it, then I just kind of follow what I feel my heart is telling to do and this is where I’m at right now. And I think I told you all that when people ask me would I ever come back you know, I would probably be too embarassed to come back. Because I am retiring and I ‘m announcing a retirment and that’s really where I’ve been for the last 3 or 4 days. I am embarrased that I am coming back but then, I’m like what can I do, things have changed, my desire to do this has changed and I sure as heck don’t want to look back 10 years down and said I wished I would have done that. And the guys on the club when I am around the team the desire that they show that they want me to come back it’s just been amazing, for me it’s a no brainer. I’m not scared if this happens I don’t think I’m going to fail, but I’m not scared to coming back, I’m not worried about that. I’m going to come back and I’m going to trust in my heart that I am doing the right thing. And, I am hoping and praying that it’s going to be great.
George King:
Do you know you can win here or you’re going to find that out as this thing goes along?
Pettitte:
George, I don’t think that I could do this unless I thought for sure mentally that I could get back to where I was and so I really believe that mentally I’ll be able to get back to where I was and so I believe that if I am mentally right then I’m going to win. I just believe that because I have pitched through so much stuff and, I’ve talked to you all plenty, you all know me as good as anybody. The biggest thing for me was mentally can I get back to where I was and I really believe I can and I needed to, the reason why I couldn’t commit to the Yankees earlier was because I needed to go through the process, I didn’t have time to get on the mound to do the stuff I felt I needed to do to tell them that I could get there. And during my work right now, my bullpen work and stuff like that, I can feel it all coming back as far as the mental the mental side of it also. I’m just hoping and praying physically that I hold together which I think I will and, but you never know as far as that. I mean 2010 my groin was hurting but my mind was as sharp as its ever been and I felt as I pitched great in the playoffs and that was with a bad goin and not great stuff and just felt as I grind my way to get through it. I’m ready for that challenge to do that to get through what it takes.
The Record – Pete Kelly
Do you know exactly when you are going to get to Tampa and what you would be starting to do immediately. Are you ahead of what a normal start of Spring Training training would be at this point?
Pettitte:
I don’t know really. I plan on being in Tampa Tuesday night. It is my plan right now and then I’m not real sure. I have to get there and I’m sure I’ll be in touch with Larry (Rothchild) the pitching coach. And now it will be me and him just getting it figured out and just figuring out exactly how slow they feel like they need to take me. Because obviously like I said, I’m throwing bullpen where I am throwing 60 or so pitches in the bullpen so that’s built up pretty good right there but I may have to back off from that just to start getting my legs tough covering bases that stuff because I haven’t done anything like that on a daily basis.
Sweeny Murti – WFAN Radio:
What’s going to be the hardest part about this for you?
Pettitte:
I think the hardest part will just be the next few days just knowing that I am coming back and I guess a little bit of the unknown for the first few days that I’m down there that will probably be the hardest part but I tell you man, the guys on the team are absolutely awsome and maybe it’s just me feeling anxious about it . Swish (Nick Swisher) just called me and was screaming on the phone (media laughter) and I talked to the guys, I texted pretty much everybody and right before we released this because I wanted the guys to know and I think everybody is fired up. I just can’t wait to get there. You just don’t know how important it isfor me to be around the guys and I just can’t wait to get there for me, even with the guys that are not there, to be able to build up the relationships and stuff with those guys and just looking forward to doing it. To answer your question, I think just because I have been gone and just the adjustment of the last time I walked in there I walked into the coach’s office and this time I will be walking to the other side again. That will probably just be the weirdest part of it. Once I stood on the mound the other morning it was like I never left even though it was Tuesday morning and Cashman was standing there with Gene Michaels, Joe and Larry it was like I never left, to tell you the truth it was really weird.
New York Times:
How much of this decision is just wanting to play baseball again and how much is it this team, in other words if there wasn’t an opportunity here there was not an opportunity in your mind anywhere.
Pettitte:
That is correct. Obviously, I realize they’ve build a team. It was the Yankees or nothing. Obviously, you guys realize this is all about just me having the desire to do this again. For what I am coming back and playing for is an awful lot of money and I realize that but it’s a long ways away from what we were talking about in January, you know. But I just have the desire to work again and as a man I want to go to work and my work is baseball, it’s pitching and that’s what I know. I am going to get it cranked back up and do it again.
Mark Feinseind
And what was Jeter’s and Mariano’s reactions when you told them for sure that you were coming back?
Pettitte:
Actually, Mo doesn’t know for sure. I’m sure he does now. Mo doesn’t carry a cell phone around anymore, so I have been told. He probably found out today. But I did talk to Jeter and they’re excited and pretty fired up and I tell you the first text message I got when it came out was from Jorgie (Posada) and he was fired up and was just saying welcome back and wishing me the best of luck so that was a pretty cool to get a text from him.
Andrew Marchand
ESPN-New York
Is Jorge (Posada) next?
Pettitte:
Oh, I don’t know. I don’t think so, he definitely hasn’t told me anything like that I can tell you that for sure. I don’t believe so.
?
When do you think you will be on a Major League mound, when do you think will be your time table.
Pettitte:
I’m just not sure. I mean, I hate to even start throwing stuff out there just because I’m not sure but I would imagine, I would think that if everything goes great, I don’t even know, I would hate to say anything just because I don’t know what the Yankees are thinking of yet how slow they want to take me, how careful they want to be, you know what I mean.
(Joel Sherman: Well just keep it between us)
We’re going to work together with that I think if they want me to go just from where I am right now, I think I could probably start doing rehab starts or starts in probably two or three weeks. That’s what I would think to be able to get out there and throw a couple of innings to start off with.
Mark Feisand (again)
On a separate note. Do you know if you are going to have to take time away to go to testify in the Clemens (Roger) trial?
Pettitte:
Oh man that’s not anything that I would even want to talk about. You know, until you brought that up, that hasn’t even entered into my mind.
Joel Sherman – NY Post
I realize you are just coming back but are you coming back and are you thinking I am going to keep on playing if I like this, not just the 2012 thing.
Pettitte:
I’m not sure Joel, I really am not. I can tell you right now in my mind it’s this year and then I would be like I’ve always been, just evaluate where I’m at and try to weigh my feelings, how I’m feeling and go from there so that’s probably the best answer I could give you right now is that I will probably be in the same boat I was in 2009 and 2010 and just try to go home and figure out exactly what I want to do.
Jason Zillo – anybody else?
Joel Sherman
Is Mariano (Rivera) retiring at the end of the year?
Pettitte:
Laughter! Oh man, I’ll let him tell you guys that.
Media members – Andy, thank you.
Pettitte:
All right guys, I appreciate it. It was extremely difficult to know that me and the Yankees were talking and to see you guys, a couple of you all said hey you look good why don’t you think about coming back in June. So that’s been tough and I am glad it’s over and it’s out of the way and I’m glad I can talk to you guys about it and looking forward to coming back and seeing you guys.
Sweeny Mirti
Next time you tell us the truth , no changing your mind, o.k? (Media laughter)
Pettitte:
All right man.