Andy Pettitte couldn’t dodge a line drive, but the Yankees may have dodged a bullet.
Although Pettitte will miss his next scheduled start after taking a liner off his left elbow Wednesday night, he appears to already be moving forward. Pettitte went to Yankee Stadium yesterday for treatment. He was iced, given range of motion therapy and electrotherapy. The series of treatments lasted between an hour and 90 minutes.
“I feel much better,” Pettitte said through a team spokesman. “I’ve regained flexibility and strength. This is a step in the right direction.”
Yankees trainer Gene Monahan said Pettitte is coming along nicely and his bruise – just above the point of the elbow – is already receding. Pettitte threw only three pitches in his start Wednesday against the Devil Rays before getting struck in the first inning by a Ben Grieve line drive.
The injury could’ve been worse. The liner hit Pettitte in the same elbow that he strained in April 1999, necessitating a stay on the 15-day disabled list. But Pettitte insisted he was fine after Wednesday’s incident, according to teammate Scott Brosius.
“Going into the postseason, you need all your horses,” Brosius said. “He’s certainly one of them.
“It’s very understandable why everybody wants to be careful and make sure he’s 100 percent as we go down the stretch.”
Manager Joe Torre was actually a little upbeat late Wednesday, although he didn’t know who would take Pettitte’s place in the rotation.
With the off-day yesterday, the Yankees could have skipped Sterling Hitchcock’s turn and pitched him in Pettitte’s place. Ted Lilly, pitching for the first time since Sept. 4, was marvelous in 72/3 innings of emergency relief and is also a candidate. That takes a back seat to Pettitte’s health, of course.
“It was just above the elbow, which is good news, because that would have been really nasty if it hit him on the bone,” Torre said. “But he was hurting pretty good.”
Pettite’s status determines the rest of the postseason rotation, although Torre said Wednesday afternoon any of his starters could pitch any of the games.
What makes the most sense is the following scenario, which is now up in the air:
Roger Clemens will definitely pitch Game 1 of the Division Series, regardless of opponent.
If the Yankees face Oakland, the left-handed Pettitte would be a smart choice to neutralize the potent left-handed bats of the A’s in Game 2 at Yankee Stadium. Jason Giambi, Terrence Long, Eric Chavez and Johnny Damon can all take advantage of the short porch in right field, but Pettitte is nasty on lefties.
That would allow Mike Mussina, arguably the team’s best pitcher over the last six weeks, to open Game 3 on the road in Oakland.
Pettitte would probably need to be ready by the regular season’s final weekend in order to pitch a Game 2.
“We’re hoping to have him back for one more start before the season ends, which would put him in line for his playoff start,” GM Brian Cashman said. “And we’re hoping that’s enough time for him to settle back in.
“As long as he’s healthy enough to take the mound, his track record of postseason performances speaks for itself. No matter how he’s pitched prior to taking the mound in the postseason, we’ll have confidence he’ll give us a chance to win.”
