Yankee Stadium's Memorial Park will soon have another addition, the number 46. MLB.com's William Boor reports that the New York Yankees will retire former pitcher Andy Pettitte's #46 on August 23 of the coming 2015 season. The news broke from Pettitte's son Josh.
The ceremony is one of a fairly long list that includes Yankees from the dynasty years of 1995-2012 in which the Yankees made the postseason all but once, capturing 13 American League Eastern Division titles, three A.L. Wild Card berths, seven American League pennants, and five World Series championships.
From those years, Pettitte will join former teammates Derek Jeter (#2), Jorge Posada (#20), Mariano Rivera (#42), and Bernie Williams (#51) in having their jersey numbers hang in Memorial Park, all possibly by the end of 2015 or 2016. Williams retired after 2006, but the others made up the "Core Four" that stayed together from 1995-2011 before Posada retired. Pettitte and Rivera retired after the 2013 season, and Jeter called it a career at the end of last season.
Pettitte pitched 15 years in Yankee pinstripes from 1995-2003, 2007-2010, and 2012-2013. During those years, he had no losing record, finishing an even .500 (11-11) in his final year of 2013. For his entire Yankee career, Pettitte was 219-127 with a 3.94 ERA, 1.37 WHIP, and 51.5 WAR (3.4 average WAR). He amassed 2,020 strikeouts, made three A.L. All-Star teams, had an ERA+ of 115, and posted a FIP of 3.77.
Pettitte was even more impressive in the postseason as he posted a career playoff record of 19-11 with a 3.81 ERA. He won 18 postseason games as a Yankee, and his 19 total wins is a Major League record. His best postseason performance came in Game 5 of the 1996 World Series when, with the Yankees tied at two games apiece with the Atlanta Braves, he pitched 8 2/3 innings of shutout ball, capped by his force out at third base on a sixth-inning Mark Lemke bunt, which then led to an inning-ending double play.
Pettitte also spent three seasons with the Houston Astros from 2004-2006, where he won 37 more games, struck out 428 more hitters, and pitched in an eighth World Series (2005). He retired as a Yankee after 2010 but came back to pitch two more years.
Memorial Park already contains 17 numbers that the Yankees have officially retired thus far with those of the Core Four plus Williams's sure to come soon. These five inclusions would bring the total to 22. Pettitte will become the third left-handed Yankee pitcher (and fourth overall) to earn such an honor. Here is the entire list of retired Yankee numbers with the players or managers and the players' positions.
1 - Billy Martin, manager
3 - Babe Ruth, outfield
4 - Lou Gehrig, first base
5 - Joe DiMaggio, outfield
6 - Joe Torre, manager
7 - Mickey Mantle, outfield
8 - Yogi Berra and Billy Dickey, catchers
9 - Roger Maris, outfield
10 - Phil Rizzuto, shortstop
15 - Thurman Munson, catcher
16 - Whitey Ford, pitcher
23 - Don Mattingly, first base
32 - Elston Howard, catcher and outfield
37 - Casey Stengel, manger
42 - Mariano Rivera, closer (and Jackie Robinson)
44 - Reggie Jackson, outfield and DH
49 - Ron Guidry, pitcher
Pettitte, though, does come with his controversy. He is linked to the use of PED, which could greatly harm his chances at entering the Hall of Fame as it has for Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Mark McGwire, and Sammy Sosa. Still, Pettitte will receive the honor of classification as one of the all-time Yankee greats on Sunday, August 23, before the Yankees take on the Cleveland Indians.