Andy Pettitte Back with Yankees After Three Seasons in Houston

Seeing one Andrew Eugene Pettitte back in Yankee pinstripes is a sight for sore eyes, and it'll look even better when he stands on the mound at Yankee Stadium next month wearing a Yankee uniform for the first time since the 2003 World Series.

After three years in purgatory with the Houston Astros, Pettitte is home, back where he belongs. The Yankees never should have let the big lefthander get away in the first place and admitted as much when they re-acquired him in the offseason.

Pettitte's return is a reminder of the glory days, when the Yankees captured four World Series titles in five years from 1996-2000. With Bernie Williams home in New York after rejecting the Yankees' offer of a minor league contract, there are only four players remaining from those halcyon days: Pettitte, Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera and Jorge Posada. They each have four World Series rings.

But the Yankees didn't give Pettitte, who won 149 games for the team from 1995-2003, $16 million just to be nostalgic. They think he still can be productive, and so do I. The way things stand now, the 34-year-old Pettitte is projected as the Yankees' No. 3 starter behind Chien-Ming Wang and Mike Mussina.

In some circles, the move was criticized as another example of the Yankees living in the past, and Pettitte, with more mileage on his arm, clearly is not the same pitcher he was in his prime. Pettitte underwent elbow surgery in August 2004, meaning there is a very real risk that he could break down again.

Still, Pettitte arguably was the best pitcher in the National League in the second half of the 2005 season, when he helped lead the Astros' dramatic charge to the playoffs. Houston upset the St. Louis Cardinals in the National League championship series that year to reach the World Series for the first time in franchise history. Pettitte went 37-26 in his three seasons in Houston, including a 17-9 mark with a 2.39 ERA in the 2005 campaign.

The Yankees have not had a great deal of success with some of their recent pitching additions. Jeff Weaver, Javier Vazquez and Jose Contreras quickly come to mind. But if there was one common theme with those guys, it's that they never seemed comfortable in New York.

That simply will not be the case with Pettitte, who grew up in the Yankees' organization. He understands the expectations and pressure of pitching in the Bronx. He knows how to win big games, having won 13 playoff contests for the Bombers. If Pettitte doesn't succeed in his return to the Yankees, it won't be because he couldn't handle the pressure. It'll just be because he wasn't effective.

I don't know if Pettitte is the final piece that gets the Yankees over the hump in their bid to win their first World Series title in seven years, but I do know that it's great to have him back. Perhaps I'm being overly optimistic, but I believe Pettitte can win 12-15 games for the Yankees this season, especially with a strong offense behind him. I also think he brings an intangible of toughness the Yankees have been lacking in recent seasons. With a career mark of 186-104, Pettitte needs 14 victories to reach the 200-win plateau. I could see him getting it with a big September win over the Red Sox.

The one thing I missed the most about Pettitte was his glare on the mound. He'd pull his cap down over his eyes and stare at the plate, locked in, waiting for Posada, his batterymate, to call the pitch.

Of the 162 games Pettitte has won with the Yankees, including the postseason victories, there are two that stand out for me. The first is the classic battle with John Smoltz in the fifth game of the 1996 World Series against the Atlanta Braves that has to go down as one of the greatest pitching duels in postseason history. Pettitte pitched 8 1/3 scoreless innings as the Yankees blanked the Braves, 1-0, to take a three games to two lead in the series. Two days later, with Jimmy Key on the mound, the Yankees ended an 18-year World Series drought, winning their 23rd title. Three more would follow from 1998-2000.

My other Pettitte memory is the second game of the 2000 division series against the Oakland Athletics. The Yankees had a huge September lead over the Red Sox that season but staggered into the playoffs after losing their final seven games. Once the postseason started, it didn't get any better as the Athletics defeated the Yankees, 5-3, in the opener. The dynasty seemed over as the Yankees appeared dead in the water, but Pettitte righted the ship in Game Two, blanking Oakland for 7 2/3 innings in a 4-0 victory. As every Yankees fan knows, they went on to defeat the Mets in five games in the first Subway Series in 44 years. It was the Yankees' 26th and last World Series crown.