“There has been a lot of little stuff (going wrong). But the whole thing is that I am walking guys and I am not good right now. I have to get better.” ANDY PETTITTE
Andy Pettitte is living in a Murphy’s Law world right now. He is 5-7 with a bloated 5.59 ERA, dead center in trade rumors that won’t die and watching things happen behind him that make you wonder what Pettitte did to tick off the Baseball Gods.
In his last outing against the Mets a week ago today, Pettitte watched left fielder Ricky Ledee turn a fly ball out by Robin Ventura into a double and then watched Jorge Posada fail to block the plate on Rey Ordonez’ sacrifice fly to right that scored Benny Agbayani.
“There has been a lot of little stuff,” Pettitte said. “But the whole thing is that I am walking guys and I am not good right now. I have to get better.” Oh would the Yankees love to see that. Then maybe all the talk of them trading the 27-year-old lefty would subside. Then they would have another effective starter to go with Orlando “El Duque” Hernandez and David Cone while they wait for Roger Clemens to straighten out and Hideki Irabu to show them more so they could trust him.
With three starts before the July 31 waiver trading deadline, Pettitte would make the Yankees’ world a lot easier if he pitches well. He doesn’t necessarily have to win, just pitch better than he has.
Asked if he laid the foundation for the rebuilding project with a six-inning stint against the Mets in which he allowed four runs and five hits but walked four (one intentionally), Pettitte said the groundwork started before he worked Shea Stadium.
“I feel pretty good about my last four or five starts,” Pettitte said. “I think I have been ready to build on them.”
In his last five outings, Pettitte is 2-2 with a 5.01 ERA. In 321/3 innings, he has allowed 32 hits and 18 walks.
For somebody who admits to being a perfectionist, it has been a rough go.
“It’s always a battle for me,” Pettitte said. “I do know that I have gotten better on the mound, knowing that you can’t fight yourself. I remember when I first came up, I got really mad on the mound. It’s funny, if you have a good start, it’s OK to show emotion, but if you have a bad start, you have to keep your composure.”
Always a mechanics freak, Pettitte has arrived at the point where he is ready to fire away and see where the dust settles.
“I just have to go at the hitters,” said Pettitte, who sports a hefty .290 batting average against. “I can’t be worrying about walks and just go at guys.”
Since Pettitte pitched what many people believe was the best game of his career against the Braves in Game 5 of the 1996 World Series when he tossed 81/3 innings of shutout ball in a game the Yankees won, 1-0, he was asked if seeing the Braves will give him a shot of adrenaline.
“You always think about that, but I remember four games before that in the first game of the World Series when I didn’t get out of the third inning,” said Pettitte, who was rocked for seven runs in 21/3 innings during a 12-1 Braves victory. Last year in one start against the Braves, Pettitte didn’t get a decision, working 62/3 innings in which he gave up three runs. For his career, he is 0-0 with a 2.31 ERA in two regular season games against the Braves.
“I like what Andy did,” Torre said of Pettitte’s outing against the Mets. “Especially since we didn’t play that well behind him and he still held together.”
As for the trade rumors, Torre can’t control them and the best advice he can give any player is not to drown in them.
“If it happens, it happens,” Torre said. “It’s not like you are looking to do something, but if somebody comes up and makes a deal that you think will make you better, you do it. But you can’t let that take you over because then you are done, that will drive you nuts. It’s tough enough to pitch here without having to do that.”