ANAHEIM, Calif. — In this game of pass the baton, it’s Andy Pettitte’s turn to keep the Yankees speeding toward the finish line of what has become a 3 x 100 relay.
CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Pettitte are your participants, and the gold medal seems within reach.
Alex Rodriguez and the bullpen are humming, but if you want the real reason the Yankees are within two victories of their first pennant since 2003, look no further than a starting rotation that has a 1.62 ERA this postseason.
But then, isn’t this what the Yankees had in mind when they paid $243.5 million for Sabathia and Burnett last offseason before getting favorite son Pettitte to accept an incentive laden contract?
Pettitte did his part last Sunday, limiting the Twins to one run over 6 1/3 innings, helping the Yankees complete an ALDS sweep. Today he’s asked to muzzle the Angels in Game 3 of the ALCS.
Pettitte was 0-2 with a 7.88 ERA against the Angels in 2009, but the Yankees can also point to the fact Sabathia had awful numbers against the Halos — both this season and for his career — and had no trouble in Game 1 of this series.
The numbers the Yankees appreciate, as always, are Pettitte’s career postseason statistics. The victory at Minnesota last week made him 15-9 with a 3.89 ERA lifetime in the postseason. He is tied with John Smoltz for most postseason victories all-time. Smoltz is 15-4 with a 2.67 ERA.
“I’m obviously a benefit of a lot of great teams and a lot of great players that I’ve been able to play with,” Pettitte said yesterday.
But the Yankees also know Pettitte hasn’t just been along for the ride since making his first postseason appearance in 1995.
“He’s been there quite a bit and he’s learned from experience,” Johnny Damon said. “He knows when to go after guys, but seeing Andy pitch all year, he’s been amazing. This guy looks like he still has another three or four years left in him and I’m very proud of him.”
If there’s a caveat, Pettitte was a mess the last time he faced the Angels in the playoffs, in Game 2 of the 2002 ALDS. The lefty allowed four earned runs over three innings that night, and the Yanks never recovered in the series. But the Angels’ lineup has changed completely since then.
“He just has that veteran presence where he’s not going to get taken out of his game,” Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. “That’s the first lesson in not only being a good major league pitcher, but if you want to pitch in the playoffs you have to have that makeup, and Andy certainly does.”