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Andy Pettitte is one of the greatest Yankees of the last team dynasty, and he was always one of the quietest. So, after his retirement at the end of this past season, none of us will be very surprised if we don't see him on the studio shows, or in the news, or in the papers for a while.
But I was lucky enough to steal ten minutes of Andy's time for this podcast. I love how this came out, because it's basically just a couple of dads talking about their kids and life in general. If you're a Yankee fan, or just want to know what star athletes think about when they're not thinking about sports, this is a must-listen!
Highlights:
Andy on whether or not he'd consider coming back one more time, maybe mid-season:
"No, I'm not into the half-season stuff. I'm great. I can't wait to do the things I've wanted to do. To see my oldest boy play ball at Baylor in the spring. I have a sophomore in high school - I can't wait to see him play and be with him. And to coach my 8 year old a little bit and see my daughter do her stuff. We had a great run. It's time for it to be over as far as I'm concerned personally....I am grateful for the way everything worked out. The way the fans were. And my teammates."
Normal things Andy's looking forward to doing:
"Being here around the family. We'll be able to take a family vacation again. The last one, we went to Wyoming and stayed on a ranch with no TV. Just a two bedroom cabin on a ranch. And it was one of the greatest times we've had as a family ever. Just being by ourselves."
Will the fans see a little more of him?
"I'm not sure what I'll do. I'm obviously going to try to get back up there (NY). I don't want to plan a whole lot of stuff because, especially during this first year of retirement, I want to see my kids do everything. When you put too much stuff on your plate, there's always something that comes up, and you end up regretting it because you have to miss your kids doing this and that. No doubt I'm going to do as much as I can in New York because New York's been so special to me and the fans have been so great. But I want to have a good balance."
Does he have regrets?
"No. Of course, when you stop and think about games, like Game 1 of the 1996 World Series, I think about how I let that game be bigger than I should have - as far as my thought process. When you think of stuff like that, now knowing how to handle big games, you wish that as a young player you had been better. But I loved everything that happened in my career. It was all a learning experience. Maybe if I hadn't struggled in that game, then I wouldn't have gotten where I needed to be later on."
On life and faith:
"The Lord has played everything out for me perfectly and there's been good times and bad times, but through all of it, everything's been a great learning experience. It's life! That's what's so great about life - the ups and downs and challenges it brings."
On the future:
"I will pour every ounce of energy into my family, and my community. I enjoy helping and giving back, because I've been blessed. I don't know exactly what I'll do, but I'm in no rush. I'm gonna try to enjoy it all. At the right time, something will come along."
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And don’t forget: You can LISTEN TO MY OTHER PODCASTS, including Lou Holtz, Victor Cruz, Eli Manning, Magic Johnson, Joe Torre, Don Mattingly, JR Smith, Archie Manning, Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, Robert Wuhl, Dave Winfield & Brian Cashman, by clicking >> HERE. <<
