Andy Pettitte's Frankie Pentangeli moment

When I heard today about how Andy Pettitte indicated that he might have, um, misremembered what Roger Clemens said about HGH, my first thought was that it was something out of a movie. The Godfather, Part II, that is!

Specifically, I am referring to the infamous scene in which Frankie Pentangeli, who is set to testify as to what he knew about Michael Corleone's crimes, all of a sudden clams up. That's because Corleone has arranged for Frankie Five Fingers' brother to come in from Sicily. Seeing his brother keeps him from testifying -- he tells the Senate committee that he doesn't know anything:

The FBI guys promised me a deal. So I made up a lot of stuff about Michael Corleone. Because then, that's what they wanted. But it was all lies. Everything. They said Michael Corleone did this, Michael Corleone did that. So I said, "Yeah, sure."

The final script of the movie movie doesn't really explain why just seeing his brother would compel him not to testify, other than it being about Sicily and omerta, although Michael tells his wife Kay that "it was between those brothers." (An aside -- Pentangeli's character wasn't in the first movie, and he serves as a replacement for Clemenza after Richard Castellano, the actor who portrayed Clemenza in the movie, couldn't come to terms with Francis Ford Coppola on a new contract. While The Godfather, Part II is a great movie, I think Pentangeli's role would have been much more powerful if he were still Clemenza, like in the first film. But I digress.)

Anyhow, back to Andy Pettitte. According to his Congressional testimony, he told Laura Pettitte of what Clemens said back in the day about using HGH. However, as Ken Davidoff, now of the New York Post, reminds us:

The government’s best weapon to fight back would be to reveal that Pettitte acquired HGH from Brian McNamee, who will say he injected Clemens with illegal performance-enhancing drugs, and that Pettitte shared the details of the conversation with his wife, Laura. District Judge Reggie Walton has closed both doors, however, saying the McNamee connection would be “guilt by association” and the Laura Pettitte testimony “hearsay.”

Oh, great. Thanks, Andy, for potentially helping to set Roger Clemens free, by saying this today in court:

“As you sit here today, you believe in your heart and mind that you very well might have misunderstood Mr. Clemens in 1999 or 2000?” asked one of Clemens’s defense lawyers, Michael Attanasio. “Could have,” Pettitte said. “It’s 50-50 that you might have heard it, might have misunderstood it?” “That’s fair,” Pettitte replied.

The thing of it is, being so ambiguous, and unsure, will not change anybody's minds who thinks that Pettitte was a rat. It will not repair his friendship with The Rocket. But what it could do is give a jury reasonable doubt on finding Clemens guilty. Lovely. Thanks for nothing, Andy!

What do you think? Tell us about it!

Why I have very mixed emotions about Andy Pettitte coming back

Of all the dramatic things! Oh my goodness gracious! Andy Pettitte is coming back!

Even though Andy Pettitte is one of my all-time favorite Yankee players, I have to say I'm not so sure that him coming back in 2012 is such a great idea. For one thing, he's going to be 40 years old this summer. I know Pettitte says he's mentally ready, determined, will work as hard as physically possible, blah blah blah, but Father Time stops for nobody, not even Andy Pettitte. Not to mention how much injury time Pettitte missed over the past few years, and could miss again.

In addition, other than Jamie Moyer and Mariano Rivera, how many pitchers are successful into their forties? And the reason we remember them is because they are so rare.

Lots of Yankee fans were excited when Roger Clemens came back, but he ran out of gas in about three months. So did Pedro Martinez with his go-round with the Philadelphia Phillies. Could that happen with Andy?

At any rate, I'm kind of astonished that Brian Cashman would offer Pettitte in December $10-12 million for one year, according to various news reports. Paying a pitcher heading close to 40 that kind of money, when he hasn't pitched in a year, is a bit wacky. The current $2.5 million contract is much more sensible, though.

I also really liked the way Mike Mussina and Paul O'Neill retired, and I thought Pettitte would stick to that -- go through your last year, play well, and leave people wanting more. It will make me very sad if Pettitte embarrasses himself on the field this year.

Look, I'm not trying to be a hater here. I hope I am wrong. But I'm not sure if pulling a Brett Favre here was the best of ideas for Pettitte. If he ends up having a great year, I will be happy to eat my words. But right now, I'd hate to see him tamper with his great Yankee legacy by having a sub-par season.

What do you think about Andy Pettitte coming back? Tell us about it!

Why did Brian Cashman pursue Carl Pavano -- and insult Andy Pettitte?

I've been saying all winter that for some strange reason, Brian Cashman seems to have shown very little interest in wanting Andy Pettitte back. His comments have been very tepid in talking about one of the greatest pitchers the Yankees have ever had. And the fact that Cash recently compared Pettitte to Brett Favre, the day before praising Carl Pavano (!) seems to be a real passive-aggressive message to the Texas hurler.

Compare and contrast:

Cashman on Pavano: "I had several discussions (with his agent). I still believe Pav can pitch here. He has proven he can pitch in some difficult situations. The thing is, he's healthy. I don't think he was afraid to come back here, either."

Cashman on Pettitte: "I told him don’t ‘Brett Favre’ us. You got to be all in and fully dedicated to play. Do I need him? I need him, but I don’t want him to play if his heart’s not in it.”

Yes, because nothing shows how much you need Andy Pettitte than comparing him to Brett Favre. How insulting, especially given that Pettitte is known for living his life as a Christian family man, while Favre is known for allegedly sending pictures of his genitals to girls half his age. Way to go, Brian!

Besides, the comparison is not even accurate -- Favre actually retired and unretired a gazillion times. Pettitte has never done that. And as much as I despise Favre, nobody can accuse him of not being "all in" when he did play. Suggesting such a scenario with Pettitte is also insulting.

Squawker Jon notes Cashman even using a friendly nickname - "Pav" - for Pavano. As far as I'm concerned, Pavano already has two perfectly good nicknames -- American Idle and the Crash Test Dummy!

Anyhow, I thought Derek Jeter was wrong to think that the Yankees mistreated him this offseason -- they clearly made him their priority. Pettitte, on the other hand, has a right to feel slighted. And it's not the first time this has happened -- remember the halfhearted offer they made to him after the 2003 season? Or the way they halved his salary a few years ago? I'm sure Pettitte remembers that, too.

My old boss posted here the other day that he thought Pettitte might play for the Astros again. Given the inept way Cashman has pursued him, I wouldn't be surprised.

As for Pavano, Cashman wants us all to forget that it was he who made Carl get a second, a third, and a fourth opinion on whether he needed Tommy John surgery. And this was *after* Pavano had gone to see Dr. James Andrews. Now he acts like Pavano was just misunderstood or something. Puh-lease.


And remember, Pettitte played hurt in the playoffs this year to help his team. Not that his Cashman cares about that. Maybe if Andy had been laid up for months with bruised buttocks or something, his GM would have more respect for him.

At any rate, it's sad that Randy Levine, of all people, showed more passion in just one statement on Pettitte than Cashman has all winter. The Yankee president said this a few weeks back:

"Andy's a great Yankee and a great person and I know he'll give it thought and follow his heart and we'll respect his decision. But we're out there, all of us, hoping every day that he comes back," Levine added. "I think he knows we need him. I think he knows how much we respect him and what a great leader he is."

Is it too much to expect the Yankee GM to say something similar about one of the most beloved players on the team? Apparently so.

What do you think? Tell us about it!

Why Roger Clemens is not the reason Andy Pettitte may retire

I saw there was some whole to-do over Brian Cashman saying that it looked like "right now," Andy Pettitte is "still saying, 'Don't count on me'" for next season.  Oh, great.

The Yankees GM also said, that "Andy's been very communicative [with me] on this issue. Right now, he's not playing. If he decides to play, it will be for us. He's a Yankee, from start to finish." (Well, other than that whole "going to Houston for three seasons" thing, but I digress!)

Cashman told reporters, "I don't think he's determined whether he's officially finished, but is choosing at this stage to not start 2011" and that "I'm certainly not going to hound him or bother him." Hmmmm. Did the Yankees "hound" or "bother" CC Sabathia when they opened up the Brinks' truck for him? How about when -- shudder -- Cashman got Roger Clemens back in George Steinbrenner's box to pitch for the team in 2007? Goodness gracious!

At any rate, there's been some speculation in the media as to why Pettitte hasn't re-signed with the Yankees. Bob Klapisch and Wally Matthews are hooked on the idea that Clemens himself -- or, more to the point, the Clemens federal trial set for next summer -- has something to do with it. Matthews wrote:

"...you know Clemens' attorney, Rusty Hardin, is going after Pettitte in the only areas he can in order to discredit his testimony. He is going to do his level best to crush Pettitte's reputation for honesty and sincerity and religious convictions. Simply put, he is likely to try to paint Pettitte as a lying hypocrite whose word cannot and should not be trusted.

The cross-examination could get embarrassing and highly personal.

And in a situation like that, pitching for the New York Yankees every five days and facing a ravenous media horde on a daily basis is not exactly where anyone in his or her right mind would want to be."

Klapisch had similar sentiments (an aside: what do these reporters know -- or think they know -- that makes them say Clemens will expose Pettitte in some personal way?):

"Therein lies his defense strategy: for Clemens to prevail, he’ll have to destroy Pettitte’s credibility. One person who’s known the left-hander for many years said: 'You think that’s not weighing on Andy’s mind? Who knows what Clemens is going to dig up?'


Indeed, the dual burden of facing Clemens in court and then taking the mound in the Bronx might be too much for Pettitte. After 16 years, he might be thinking there’s no reason to fight two wars, not this late in his career, not at this point in his life."

A few points:

* The idea that Clemens will actually go on trial in July is laughable. Barry Bonds was indicted on federal perjury charges in 2007 and hasn't yet faced a trial (one is scheduled for this March, but there's all sorts of legal wrangling going on right now about the evidence.). I found this story online talking about the "eve" of the upcoming Bonds trial -- written in March 2009!

The wheels of justice move very slowly, especially in federal court, where years can go by between indictment and trial date. Clemens was only indicted last August 30. Bonds' lawyers have been very aggressive -- and sometimes very successful -- in challenging the evidence against him. Why wouldn't Clemens' legal team do the same thing, and drag this ordeal out for as long as possible?

* I think both these sportswriters have been watching too many reruns of the Frankie Pentangeli Congressional committee scene in 'Godfather II" or something. Because Roger Clemens isn't going to be able to haul in Andy Pettitte's brother (or an equivalent) to get Pettitte to shut up. And it's not very realistic to think that Clemens is going to somehow drag Andy down to his level and discredit him. You don't get to throw out rumors and innuendo willy-nilly in a federal court situation. Besides, Pettitte is pretty much Teflon, as his still great reputation besides admitting to PED use shows. Unless Clemens has evidence that Andy was running a dogfighting ring, I don't see anything the Rocket's lawyers saying as hurting Pettitte's rep.

* As for the "ravenous media horde' Matthews thinks will harangue Pettitte, I have to laugh over that, given that I'm still waiting for one of the tough media guys to 1) explain how A.J. Burnett got that black eye, and 2) tell us exactly why Dave Eiland lost his job with the Yankees, and what his leave of absence from the team was all about. All Pettitte would have to say is that he's not allowed to talk about the trial, and most media types will leave it at that.  If anything, still being part of the Yankees would give Pettitte more protection, not less, from the media inquiries.

At any rate, retirement isn't some silver bullet that will somehow prevent Pettitte from having to testify. And I really don't see that this trial -- if it happens at all this year -- is what's keeping Pettitte from returning to the Yankee fold. I would put Andy's lack of interest in returning on two things: he really does want to spend more time with his family, and Cashman hasn't made him a good-enough offer to convince him to come back. No need for wacky Clemens conspiracy theories here.

What do you think? Tell us about it!

Why the Yankees' offseason is in the Schlitter

Well, the Yankees didn't get Cliff Lee, or even get Andy Pettitte back, so far this offseason. But hey, they did re-sign Sergio Mitre, give Mark Prior a contract, and now they've claimed Brian Schlitter off waivers from the Cubs. Whoo-hoo!

I know I sound like a twelve-year-old boy here, but the fact that the Yanks have picked up a pitcher named Schlitter makes me laugh and laugh. Sorry for mocking your name, Mr. Schlitter, but it pretty much sums up the Yankees offseason.

Speaking of which, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com interviewed Brian Cashman earlier this week, and he had this to say:

"We've got a lot of time left on the clock. Who knows?" Cashman said. "The bottom line is, there's a reason we haven't done anything up to this point."

Um, no. There are six weeks to pitchers and catchers, and Sergio Flipping Mitre is in the starting rotation for the New York Yankees. That's a big problem. And don't tell me I'm impatient or "saber-rattling" -- an insult Cashman throws out later in the interview -- for saying so. There's a guy named Andy Pettitte out there. Why the Yankees don't make him an offer he can't refuse (no, not that he's sleeping with the fishes, but that he gets a big payday for 2011) is beyond me.

Besides, even if the Yanks can't get Pettitte back, don't tell me there isn't a single pitcher in baseball available out there who would be better than Mitre. That's just silly.

Cash also had this to say about Pettitte:

"I could just tell you that he has been very good about it," Cashman said. "He informed us about, 'Don't wait on me, I'm leaning toward retirement. As of right now I'm not playing, and if I change my mind I'll let you know.'"

You know, I've gotten a lot of grief from readers over harping on this, but why is it that Cashman can't say anything remotely passionate about wanting Pettitte back? Why can't he make him a big offer? Every time he speaks on this, he shows all the spirit of a wet noodle.
Compare and contrast with what Yankees President Randy Levine (yes!) had to say about Pettitte last week:

"Andy's a great Yankee and a great person and I know he'll give it thought and follow his heart and we'll respect his decision. But we're out there, all of us, hoping every day that he comes back," Levine added. "I think he knows we need him. I think he knows how much we respect him and what a great leader he is."

I'm not a big Levine fan -- all too often, he has said the wrong thing -- but he hit a home run with this statement. Is it too much to expect the same from the Yankees' GM?

What do you think? Tell us about it!