Andy Pettitte is as ready to rejoin the Yankees as they are to have him back from a bout with tendinitis in his left elbow.

“I got my pitch count up to 60, which is what I wanted to do,” Pettitte said yesterday after working three innings in Tampa during an extended spring training game against Tampa Bay. He gave up one run and four hits. “I will go to 80 [pitches] my next start and get out of here.”

Pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre, who talks to Pettitte daily, is encouraged that the left-hander is itching to come back to a team he hasn’t pitched for since April 15. Pettitte is 1-1 with a 3.09 ERA in three games.

According to Stottlemyre, Pettitte will likely pitch Thursday for Norwich (Double-A). But Joe Torre said there is a chance Pettitte will go Wednesday for the Navigators.

After that, Pettitte could be Bronx-bound.

“I think he needs one more [rehab start],” Stottlemyre said.