The Yankees had been on a roll. They had actually gone several hours and no one had gotten hurt. And then Andy Pettitte tried to get off his couch.
So Friday night, the Yankees announced they were pushing Pettitte back from his next scheduled start because of lower back spasms.
At least the phrases “season-threatening” and “extended period” were nowhere to be found. Pettitte was scheduled to pitch Sunday, but now is hoping for Tuesday or Wednesday.
“Hopefully I can rest it here a few days,” said Pettitte, who said he felt a twinge in the middle of his back during his start Tuesday in Cleveland, but pitched through the matter without problems. “Almost 100 percent, we believe it’s a muscle spasm. Hopefully it just calms down and I don’t have any more problems with it.”
After running his record to 2-0 with a win over the Indians, Pettitte, who has had some similar issues in the past, including in the 2010 playoffs, went through his usual routine. He was a little sore the day after. No big deal. He threw his normal bullpen session. He felt fine. Same for his upper body workout. Then he was sitting on the couch Thursday night and tried to stand.
“Just getting up out of the couch, I guess I just had a spasm in my lower back. It just kind of locked up,” Pettitte said before the Yankees and Orioles started their series — or snowball fight the way the weather felt — Friday night with a 5-2 win at the Stadium. It’s still a little bit locked up today and I’m just going to get some treatment.”
So Pettitte called manager Joe Girardi with a rather succinct message — to which he received an equally succinct reply.
“It was me calling him last night and saying, ‘Bro, my lower back just locked up and I’m having a hard time moving around right now,’ ” Pettitte said laughing, nothing the response was a simple, “‘You ain’t pitching Sunday.’ ”
To push him back was a no-brainer as the two rainouts in Cleveland, at least in this instance, actually worked in the Yankees’ favor because the staff is rested.
“I’m just glad it’s not like we’re in a bind right now as far as needing a starter to get out there and throw on Sunday night,” Pettitte said.
Girardi, who has seen the long-term infirmary list swell with Derek Jeter, Curtis Granderson, Mark Teixeira and Alex Rodriguez, had to breathe a little easier.
“Our hope is he’ll start either Tuesday or Wednesday [against Arizona],” Girardi said. “He’s got back spasms and we’ll have to work through them. Back spasms come up. If it re-occurs all the time, then it becomes a concern. … Hopefully it’s just a one-time event.”
But Girardi acknowledged a little extra caution while Pettitte admitted more concern because, after all, he will turn 41 in June.
“We’re a little extra cautious because of his age before the back spasms,” Girardi said. “[They] can really happen to anyone. I got back spasms once a year when I played. But I do think you have to be a little bit cautious. That’s why we’re not saying, ‘We’re going to wait and see.’ We’re just saying, ‘Hey, you’re pushed back and hopefully we’ll get you back Tuesday or Wednesday.’ ”
Said Pettitte: “Anytime you have anything wrong, I just want it to go away. It is worrying a little bit because whenever I was here or whatever I did here last year, I had zero problems with my lower back. And that was just throwing, scrambling everything together as quick as I possibly could after not doing anything. And if you think you’re going to blow something out, it would have been last year.”