I love Andy as much as the next guy. It's been an absolute pleasure watching him come up thru the system and becoming one of the faces of the franchise. In his prime, I felt nothing but confidence when Pettitte was on the mound.
That was then & this is now. This is the year 2012, he is turning 40 years old in June, and he has not pitched in the big leagues in over a year. The Yankees have incredible depth, and this was before Pettitte signed. Word is that Andy is going to either start the year in Tampa or Trenton. Tampa would make the most sense from a location standpoint since the Yankees are obviously based there during Spring Training & he is already unpacked there. From a selfish nostalgic point of view though since the contract is already signed, I'd like to see #46 in Trenton since it's just an hour or so from me.
Back to the point, why? We all know that the Yankees loyalty knows no bounds and for some reason, it's the front office that must show it. It's a two-way street in this business. The players help the team win but it was the team that first gave the players their shot to begin with. To me, this signing from a competitive standpoint, makes no sense, and at $2.5 Million, that is no small chunk of change, even for the Yankees. This is a loyalty signing and it is not in the best interest of the 2012 New York Yankees. You're probably asking yourself "Why is he talking about loyalty?" Well the answer to that is that we all know that when Andy is ready to go, he is going to take someone's spot in the rotation, regardless of how he or the pitcher he's replacing, is performing. Why? It's Andy Pettitte. For how long did we see Jorge Posada flailing miserably while Jesus Montero was raking?
Yes this is a lot of ifs and assumptions but if history has taught us anything, it is the most likely scenario. The only scenario that I would be on board with is if Freddy Garcia is severely under-performing & Pettitte is excelling in the Minors. Under no circumstances, should he replace Phil Hughes or Ivan Nova in the rotation, especially if his spot in the rotation means one of them are sent to the bullpen. Hughes & Nova need to continue to start, especially Hughes, because the Yankees need to see what they have in him.
Besides who is he going to replace in the rotation, he's probably going to need at least a month, maybe more in the Minors before he's ready. So not only is he going to be handed a rotation spot, but he is also going to stunt the development of a young pitcher in either Trenton or Tampa. Whoever he bumps off in the minors, bumps off a pitcher below him, so on & so forth. It's a Domino Effect.
I'm sure this isn't a popular opinion & that's fine with me. I'm not here in hopes of pleasing the masses, I'm offering my two cents on the matter. I would have much preferred to see Pettitte at Old Timer's Day as opposed to a member of the 2012 Yankees.
Again, yes I am aware that none of this is supported with factual evidence. This is what I think is going to happen & it is not good.
