Andy Pettitte will make his first start with the Yankees since 2010 on Sunday against the Mariners in The Bronx.
Now, they’ll find out if he can still pitch. And the Yankees need him to, since the rotation has struggled behind CC Sabathia.
“It would help,” general manager Brian Cashman said of the possibility Pettitte picking up where he left from two years ago. “But there’s still an unknown. There’s a gap between what the old Andy Pettitte is and what we’re going to get. I just don’t know yet.”
The results in the minors were far from dominant, but Cashman and Pettitte believe he has done all he can in the minors despite not having great stuff his final two appearances.
“At some point, you make a call,” Cashman said. “Especially with veterans, it’s kind of difficult as you go through the process. There’s only so much you’re going to see at a certain level. It’s not necessarily always performance-related.”
It will be now, since the Yankees don’t have the rotation depth they thought they did when the 39-year-old signed during spring training.
“If everybody was telling me no, then I wouldn’t do it,” Cashman said of the meeting he had Tuesday with Pettitte, manager Joe Girardi, pitching coach Larry Rothschild and others. “I felt after what I saw in Trenton he needed two, if not three, more starts. He got two under his belt so I’m not sure if he’ll get any more by keep going down there.”
Pettitte will continue to work out at his home in Westchester before coming to the Stadium Sunday. Cashman said he expects Pettitte to throw one or two bullpens, perhaps at the Stadium, before his start.
“We’re looking forward to adding another healthy arm to the mix here because, yeah, our depth has been challenged and some of our healthy starters have been inconsistent,” Cashman said. “It would be nice to start pulling together a string of consistently strong starts by all of our starters, 1-5, and hopefully that will include Andy.”
Girardi isn’t concerned about what Pettitte has done recently, either.
“He struggled a little bit his last start with the command of some of his pitches, but that doesn’t mean he’s ready or not ready,” the manager said.
And Girardi is confident Pettitte will be able to contribute immediately.
“I think all of us probably kind of expect that we’re going to see Andy Pettitte and what we’re used to seeing: The guy who grinds out starts; has the ability to get double plays and doesn’t panic out there,” Girardi said. “I think you can only go back with what you’ve seen from him. It’s not like he’s trying to reinvent himself. I think his stuff is gonna be pretty similar to what he had when he walked away in 2010 … Will I be right? I hope so. We’ll find out.”
Cashman and Girardi both declined to speculate who might be removed from the rotation to make room for Pettitte, but David Phelps — who starts tonight — is a likely candidate.
“I’m not saying that anyone’s turn in this rotation is going to determine if they’re in the rotation as we go forward,” Girardi said. “I don’t want guys approaching their start, [thinking] ‘God, if I don’t do well this could be my last start. I think probably people are gonna write that enough. The manager doesn’t need to say it.”
Pettitte’s teammates are already anticipating his arrival.
“He cares a lot,” Derek Jeter said. “He’s been in every situation imaginable, so you know he’s not going to be overwhelmed by any situation. It doesn’t mean he’s always going to be successful, but he’s not going to be intimidated by anything.”
dan.martin@nypost.com