Pettitte bids au revoir to baseball
February 5th 2011 19:48
I finally got the chance to watch Friday’s Andy Pettitte press conference this morning (thank you regular job for screwing up my sports schedule yet again) and was left feeling more like I saw someone say “au revoir” instead of actually saying goodbye.
The left hander made it clear that he wants to spend more time with his family, and that’s more than understandable with the time away in practice, work and travel that being a professional athlete requires. But more than once he said he wasn’t quite sure why he was there, having this press conference … why he had come to Yankee Stadium to try and say good bye.
And he never really did.
Instead, he said that he knows he still has what it takes to be a winning pitcher. Instead, he said that if he feels that his “stomach is churning” when next season rolls around, he wouldn’t be afraid to mount a comeback. Instead, he left the door wide open for him to change his mind and return – be that mind change be in June, in August or next February.
There was obvious sincerity to what he said, but you were almost left more with a feeling that he was trying to convince himself of what he was saying just as much as he was trying to convince us. He admitted that he felt “tremendous pressure” and a “huge obligation” to come back this season after the Yankees failed to get Cliff Lee. He admitted that he didn’t want to go to spring training to see if he still had the heart and the desire, because he knew once he got there he, “couldn’t walk away.”
Pettitte has plenty of good reasons to stay home. His oldest son is 16-years-old and he’s made it clear many times that he wants the opportunity to be there for his family, to go to his kids games and to coach them.
So he said he set himself a deadline to decide. One way or the other, he wanted closure on this because, “I didn’t want to be the story. I didn’t want it to go on. I had to do it this way.”
So he did it – and did it without the tears many others who have stood in that spot have had. He stood in front of the media, his teammates and the world and he tried to say goodbye.
Now, he just needs to actually decide if he means it. Or instead, is it simply “until we meet again.”
Chavez to try and hook on in New York
Veteran Eric Chavez is going to try and bring his game to the Big Apple, with the veteran third baseman signing a minor league contract with the Yankees.
Chavez has spent the last 12 seasons in Oakland, but has been injury prone over the last three seasons – with various shoulder injuries limiting his playing time to just 64 games over that time.
“Being realistic about my injury history, I’m able to come in without expectations being too high,” Chavez told the San Francisco Chronicle. “Hopefully I can prove that I can still be an elite player and fit in there. If I can help them out of spring, that’s what I want to do.”
A career .267 hitter, Chavez has averaged 19 home runs and 65 RBI. But if you take off those last three injury-shortened seasons, his numbers climb to .269, with 25 home runs and 84 RBI. So if he can return to pre-injury form, numbers that could make a contribution to a lot of teams.
The big question is where he will fit in to the Yankees lineup. Chavez’s primary position is third base, where the Yanks already have Alex Rodriguez. He can also play first base, which is currently occupied by Mark Teixeira, or be a designated hitter, which is currently filled by Jorge Posada.
“Obviously, they’ve got the best third baseman in the history of the game, and they have one of the best first basemen right now,” Chavez said. “I’m not going in worried about playing too much.”
And he never really did.
Instead, he said that he knows he still has what it takes to be a winning pitcher. Instead, he said that if he feels that his “stomach is churning” when next season rolls around, he wouldn’t be afraid to mount a comeback. Instead, he left the door wide open for him to change his mind and return – be that mind change be in June, in August or next February.
There was obvious sincerity to what he said, but you were almost left more with a feeling that he was trying to convince himself of what he was saying just as much as he was trying to convince us. He admitted that he felt “tremendous pressure” and a “huge obligation” to come back this season after the Yankees failed to get Cliff Lee. He admitted that he didn’t want to go to spring training to see if he still had the heart and the desire, because he knew once he got there he, “couldn’t walk away.”
Pettitte has plenty of good reasons to stay home. His oldest son is 16-years-old and he’s made it clear many times that he wants the opportunity to be there for his family, to go to his kids games and to coach them.
So he said he set himself a deadline to decide. One way or the other, he wanted closure on this because, “I didn’t want to be the story. I didn’t want it to go on. I had to do it this way.”
So he did it – and did it without the tears many others who have stood in that spot have had. He stood in front of the media, his teammates and the world and he tried to say goodbye.
Now, he just needs to actually decide if he means it. Or instead, is it simply “until we meet again.”
Chavez to try and hook on in New York
Veteran Eric Chavez is going to try and bring his game to the Big Apple, with the veteran third baseman signing a minor league contract with the Yankees.
“Being realistic about my injury history, I’m able to come in without expectations being too high,” Chavez told the San Francisco Chronicle. “Hopefully I can prove that I can still be an elite player and fit in there. If I can help them out of spring, that’s what I want to do.”
A career .267 hitter, Chavez has averaged 19 home runs and 65 RBI. But if you take off those last three injury-shortened seasons, his numbers climb to .269, with 25 home runs and 84 RBI. So if he can return to pre-injury form, numbers that could make a contribution to a lot of teams.
The big question is where he will fit in to the Yankees lineup. Chavez’s primary position is third base, where the Yanks already have Alex Rodriguez. He can also play first base, which is currently occupied by Mark Teixeira, or be a designated hitter, which is currently filled by Jorge Posada.
“Obviously, they’ve got the best third baseman in the history of the game, and they have one of the best first basemen right now,” Chavez said. “I’m not going in worried about playing too much.”
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