“I want all of our fans to know now—while I’m still wearing this uniform—how grateful I am for their support throughout my career,” Pettitte said in a statement released by the club. “I want to have the opportunity to tip my cap to them during these remaining days and thank them for making my time here with the Yankees so special.”
The timing of his last outing at home is a little unfortunate. The Sunday game against the San Francisco Giants is also the day the club will be celebrating the achievements of the legendary Mariano Rivera, who is also retiring at the end of this season.
“One of the things I struggled with in making this announcement now was doing anything to take away from Mariano’s day on Sunday,” Pettitte said. “It is his day. He means so much to me, and has meant so much to my career that I would just hate to somehow take the attention away from him.”
This is actually the second time the 41-year-old has announced his retirement. He announced his retirement in 2010 and sat out the 2011 baseball season before returning to the Yankees in 2012. According to ESPN, Pettitte spent 15 of the 18 years of his professional career playing for the Yankees. From 2004-2006 he played for the Houston Astros.
Pettitte is the all-time leader for post-season wins as a pitcher, with an impressive 19 wins. With the Yankees, he has won five World Series titles. His overall win-loss record is 255-152, with a 3.86 ERA over his 18 seasons of play.
While this would qualify him for a spot in the MLB Hall of Fame, in December 2007, Pettitte was named in a 2007 report led by Sen. George Mitchell which accused dozens of players of using illegal performance-enhancing drugs. Pettitte would admit to using PEDs between 2002 and 2004.
Pettitte’s last start will be next weekend in a series against the Houston Astros.
