The LoHud Yankees Blog

As we talked about earlier this week, history would show that we’re still at least a few weeks away from getting an Andy Pettitte decision on whether he’ll retire or return. Pettitte did talk to a reporter at a charity golf tournament in Texas yesterday, though, and made comments that indicated right now he’s leaning towards retiring. He also made it clear that if he does pitch in 2011 it would be his final season.

“Right now, I can tell you my heart’s right here in Deer Park,” Pettitte told KHOU.com. “If something happens and I play one more year that would be it. It would be one more year and that would be it.”

I’m sure there are some Yankees fans who get frustrated by Pettitte’s indecision, but it’s obvious that his family is a big pull for him. In the same interview, he talked about how he feels like each year he returns to baseball is another year where he’s going to be missing important moments in his kids’ lives.

“My kids are getting older and one’s going to be out of high school real soon, and I’m not going to miss his whole high school,” Pettitte said. “I want to be able to be here and see some of his stuff and you can’t see his stuff playing major league baseball.  I just feel like a have a big responsibility here.  I have three boys.  I feel like I need to be around and raise them and I feel like we’re getting to that point where it’s the crucial ages of their lives that I need to be around a little bit more.”

Obviously the Yankees are counting on Pettitte to continue to be a key piece of their starting rotation though there are no guarantees he’ll return. The Daily News reported earlier today that the Yankees might have interest in Jorge De La Rosa if their pursuit of Cliff Lee falls through, but would they consider him if Pettitte retires? I’d say it’s unlikely, mostly because De La Rosa is a Type-A free agent; losing a draft pick for a No. 1 starter is one thing, but losing one for a middle-of-the-rotation guy is less palatable.

One thing the Yankees don’t have to worry about is Pettitte returning to the Astros. “It’ll be New York or it’ll be nowhere for sure,” Pettitte said. “(I) just feel like I’ve done too many things up there and too many special things up there with that group of guys for too many years, not to finish it up … up there.”

* That’s an AP shot of Pettitte with one of his sons, Luke, at the 2010 All-Star Game.

From the Yankees perspective, the most important thing to come out of Mark Teixeira’s appearance at the Lou Gehrig Sports Awards dinner last night was that the first baseman was reportedly walking without much of a limp. He says his hamstring is improving and that, if this were in-season, he’d be back on the field in just a few weeks.

The more interesting aspect of Teixeira’s comments, at least since we’re out of season, may have come when he was asked about Derek Jeter winning another Gold Glove award this week.

Teixeira defended Jeter winning the award and also criticized a defensive metric that indicates Jeter – as well as Robinson Cano and Teixeira himself – were below par in the field this past season.

“I hear about this UZR, Ultimate Zone Rating,” Teixeira said, “and I saw Robinson Cano has a negative Ultimate Zone Rating. That is absolutely crazy. Robinson Cano is by far … the best second baseman I’ve ever seen and he’s a negative defender by that Ultimate Zone Rating. So I don’t put any stock into those things.”

Just for the record, Teixeira was a minus-2.7, Cano was a minus-0.6 and Jeter was a minus-4.7 in UZR, according to Fangraphs.com. Teixeira, however, wasn’t much convinced.

“Derek had a great season at short,” Teixeira said. “He turns a double play as well as anybody. He deserved the Gold Glove. Look at his statistics. And you also have to realize the flashy plays aren’t really where it’s at. It’s great if you get to a ball and people say ‘look at his range.’ Derek may not have as much range, but what good is it if you get to a ball and then throw it away? Now the guy is on second base.”

* See? According to this AP shot, Teixeira really does like his fellow infielders a lot.

If you saw Brian Cashman’s interview on the YES Hot Stove Show yesterday, you know that he seemed particularly interested in stressing that none of the young catchers in the Yankees system are going to be handed a job for next season. Even though Jorge Posada has been told he’ll be the primary DH in 2011, Cashman doesn’t want people thinking that Jesus Montero (or anyone else) is going to automatically slide in if they don’t perform.

At Joe Torre’s gala, Cashman expanded on that concept slightly with an interesting quote about the competition between Montero, Austin Romine and Francisco Cervelli.

“I’m sure Montero’s gonna want to prove that it’s time for him to catch,” Cashman said. “I’m sure Romine’s gonna want to prove that, ‘Hey, why is Montero getting all the ink, they should be writing about me.’ And I’m sure Cervelli is in the middle of this thing saying, ‘Hey, this is a bunch of crap, because I should be the guy that they’re talking about being the everyday guy. I’ve got more experience than the other two.’”

Cashman went on, “Which creates great competition — that’s what I want. And I wouldn’t even close the door on looking out in the marketplace and see if I can secure somebody else out there as a cushion. … I hope that’ll be a great healthy competition.”

Ultimately, I wouldn’t be at all surprised if the Yankees signed a catcher (figure someone a cut below the John Buck level) as some more insurance but the battle between Romine and Montero (and, sure, Cervelli) should be a highlight of spring training.

These guys have been getting a whole lot of ink and attention from the media for the past few years, and if you’ve been following these guys for a while now – as I know most of you have – then spring training ought to be a whole lot of fun seeing what they can do.

* Those are AP shots of Romine (top) and Montero (below)

It may only be a technicality but for Derek Jeter, the past few days have meant facing a strange reality: He’s not a Yankee right now. Actually, if we’re being official about it, he’s unemployed.

“I think my parents were joking about it, earlier today,” Jeter told the media last night at Joe Torre’s “Safe At Home” gala. “My grandmother said I have no job, so then you think about it. But really, it doesn’t feel like there’s anything different, if I’m just telling you how I feel. I understand that there are negotiations that are going to come and those types of things, but for me personally, I don’t feel any different.”

Jeter confirmed that he and the Yankees had a meeting earlier this week in Florida, though he said the subject of a position change down the road didn’t come up. Ultimately, as Brian Cashman said, “I think we both want the future to be in pinstripes,” and there seems to be little doubt that Jeter will sign a new deal soon.

Until then, he’s out of work, though somehow I don’t think the Yankees are going to change the locks on him or anything.

* That’s an AP shot of the newest member of the American unemployed.

Here are a few nuggets to snack on if you – like me – don’t have the NFL Network …

• The Yankees have checked in on Carl Crawford but he is definitely a little ways down their list. Most people think the Angels will land Crawford and Torii Hunter believes the Red Sox – as opposed to the Yankees – will be the Angels’ biggest competition.

• A former Yankees draft pick has got Oklahoma State in the college football BCS mix.

• Reggie Jackson apparently knows the right protocol for ordering soup.

• A very nice Veterans Day piece from Bryan Hoch on former Yankee Jerry Coleman and his service.

• The Nationals have new uniforms. My reaction: Meh.

• Nice touch by the guys on the YES “Hot Stove” show to make mention of the passing of longtime Mariners broadcaster Dave Niehaus. He was an icon in the business and a fixture with Seattle and – as Jay Buhner said – “he could call a sunset.” If you have a moment, take a listen to some of his famous calls.

That’s it for tonight. Thanks for all the comments. Back at it tomorrow.

After winning the first Gold Glove of his career earlier this week, Robinson Cano added a second Silver Slugger to his personal trophy case earlier tonight (he also won in 2006). The honor shouldn’t have come as much of a surprise to Cano, who pretty much blew away the field among second basemen in the AL, with Howie Kendrick and Ian Kinsler being very, very distant competition.

Cano’s numbers? Only a .319 average, .381 OBP, .534 slugging percentage with 103 runs, 29 home runs and 109 RBI. It was by far the best season of Cano’s career and, by winning both offensive and defensive awards, shows how Cano has developed into an all-around star. Carl Crawford and Joe Mauer joined Cano as the only other AL Gold Glove and Silver Slugger winners.

* That’s an AP shot of Cano at the plate.

Just a programming note for those of you with access to the YES Network: Brian Cashman is scheduled to appear on the season-premiere of “Yankees Hot Stove” tonight at 6:30 p.m. The e-mail I got telling me about the appearance said that Cashman is scheduled to appear by satellite, so we can only assume that he’ll be doing his spot from Cliff Lee’s basement.

* That’s an AP shot of Cashman doing what he does for most of the winter.

… Or at least playing between the hashmarks. As you can see, Yankee Stadium is just about ready for the Notre Dame-Army football game on Nov. 20.

When Brian Cashman met with Cliff Lee and his wife yesterday in Arkansas, no official offer was made. This was more a get-to-know-you kind of meeting, but it’s obvious that the Yankees will have a contract proposal for Lee coming soon. Lee is looking for a deal comparable to what his buddy, CC Sabathia, got a few years back and that was seven years for $161 million.

Now, putting the actual dollars aside for a second (and you’d need a forklift to do that), how concerned should the Yankees be about making yet another long-term commitment to a pitcher?

Anyone who has followed baseball for a while knows that there are plenty of cases where longterm deals with pitchers have blown up big time (Mike Hampton, Kevin Brown, Barry Zito, among others). This terrific piece by the folks at ESPN, however, breaks down the recent history of all the starters who have signed contracts of four or more years since 1990-91.

Of those 52 players, the article says, how many made 30 starts a season and had an ERA+ of 120 or better over the life of the deal (given the money involved, I don’t think those are unreasonable expectations to have for Lee should he come to the Yankees)? Only five of the 52. That’s just nine percent.

To be fair, not all those deals were created equal (and some were just insane to begin with). Jeff Suppan? Chan Ho Park? Yeeesh. Not exactly Cliff Lee. It’s also worth noting that Lee has a pretty good injury history. He has had abdominal muscle issues in the past, but nothing serious with his arm and shoulder. He also is generally recognized as having excellent mechanics that should help keep him healthy.

Ultimately, we know the Yankees are going to offer him a big contract. Of course they will. And knowing the win-now universe in which the Yankees choose to live, it’s understandable. Will it work out in the end? Looking at the numbers and knowing that the Yankees would have Lee AND Sabathia and A.J. Burnett on their roster playing out big deals, the numbers don’t support it.

That doesn’t mean paying Lee is the wrong move. It just means the Yankees have to know that adding yet another long-term pitching contract to the team – while possibly helping in the short-run – also raises the odds against them.

* That’s an AP shot of Cliff Lee after Cashman mentioned how much the Yankees might be willing to offer from this year’s playoffs.

Good morning, everyone. The Yankees, as much as any franchise I’ve ever been around, take showing appreciation for our troops very seriously. I think that’s admirable and, whatever your particular political bent or belief, I think we can all get behind the idea that having a day to celebrate our veterans is important.

There was a pretty cool thread on the YES Network web site message board about Yankees with military service and if you’re interested in checking it out, you can go here. That’s also where I found the Joe DiMaggio card pictured with this post.

We’ll have our regular schedule of posts today (whatever that is), but however you spend the day, please take a moment to give thanks to those who serve or have served. They deserve it.