A Baseball Star Was Taking The World By Storm, Then He Made A Wild Statement

It’s early 2008 and Andy Pettitte must be feeling sick to his stomach. He’s had a successful baseball career up until this point, but now things have taken a very dark turn. He’s been caught up in a massive scandal, and now he needs to address it. Visibly nervous, he stands behind the mic and prepares to address the press and his fans. How they’ll respond, nobody knows yet.

Standing with Whitey

Until this bleak moment in the winter of 2007-08, things had been going very well for Pettitte. He’d found a great deal of success as a pitcher for the New York Yankees, which even earned him some comparisons with the legendary Whitey Ford. He never quite reached the same heights as Ford, but then few, if any, ever have.

Not a great

Despite his immense success as a pro pitcher, Pettitte just isn’t considered an all-time great. He’s never managed to make it into the Hall of Fame, and there’s no real indication he ever will down the line. But if he was as good as his stats seem to suggest, why is that?

Patchy career

Well, it’s true that Pettitte’s career was a little patchy at times. His form definitely had its ups and downs, which has maybe acted against him when it comes to assessing his overall achievements in the game. But was his inconsistency the only reason he isn’t considered a true baseball great? Or is there a more sinister factor at play?

No escape

Well, it’s impossible to ignore the statement Pettitte delivered all those years ago. The things he spoke about that day have undoubtedly cast a shadow on his career and legacy, and it’s impossible to ignore. Rightly or wrongly, this former New York Yankee will never truly escape from what was said.

Early days

Pettitte comes from Baton Rouge in Louisiana, where he arrived into the world in the summer of 1972. He and his family upped sticks when he was aged nine, moving out to a suburb of Houston, Texas. He went through high school there, before attracting the attention of the New York Yankees at the start of the ’90s.

Stay in school

Pettitte was faced with a decision to make: become a pro baseball player, or go to college. In the end, he and his parents thought it would be best if he spent another year in education. Then, he could give baseball a proper shot. He kept playing, of course, and his coach around this time compared him to the great Roger Clemens.

Transformation

This coach — a guy named Wayne Graham — was pivotal in helping Pettitte to develop his game. Under his guidance, the budding left-handed pitcher really started to improve. Graham put the kid on a diet, as well as setting him up with an exercise regimen. Within months, Pettitte’s abilities were transformed.

Joining the Yankees

By early 1991 it seemed obvious that Pettitte was ready to step up and enter into the big time. The Yankees had continued to monitor the young man’s progress, and they prepared an offer to get him to sign up. At 18 years of age, Pettitte was now with the Yankees.

Climbing the ranks

Progress as a New York Yankee was steady for Pettitte. He didn’t immediately set the world alight, but he put in the work and started to climb the ranks a little. By the time he was 22, he was fighting for a place in the starting lineup. And after an initial setback, he managed to achieve that aim.

Making progress

Thanks, in part, to Pettitte’s efforts, the Yankees made huge progress. In 1995 the team reached the playoffs: a feat they hadn’t managed in 14 years. Unfortunately for Pettitte and his teammates, that was the extent of it that year. They didn’t go all the way.

An All-Star

By ’96 Pettitte’s place within the starting lineup was all but assured. He became their de facto number one guy, plus he was even included in the All-Star group of players for the first time. His win ratio was pretty good that year, and he finished his season on a high.

Achieving glory

For the first time in nearly 20 years, the Yankees finally made it to the top and won the World Series. Pettitte definitely played a big part in that glory, a feat which this team hadn’t achieved since ’78. And on a personal level, his game was reaching new heights. He was up there with the best that season.

Hitting new heights

In many respects, things only continued to improve from there. The following year, Pettitte was, if anything, playing even better than ever before. He didn’t win quite as many games, but his stats often represented an improvement on the ’96 season. In certain areas of his game, 1997 was arguably his peak.

Overshadowed

But even though Pettitte was playing wonderfully and obtaining impressive stats, his achievements were overshadowed by others. Rivals — including his one-time hero Roger Clemens — were playing even better than he was. He won no individual plaudits for his personal achievements that year, plus the Yankees lost out in the post-season playoffs.

Early success

Pettitte’s initial period as a pitcher for the Yankees was very successful from a personal perspective. He’d distinguished himself as one of his team’s best players, if not the very best. And not many pitchers in the history of MLB had achieved the same kinds of stats he did in their first three years.

Running into difficulty

Unfortunately for Pettitte, that was about as high as he’d ever go. After those heady initial three years had passed, things got a little more difficult for the pitcher. The Yankees themselves were going from strength to strength, winning three straight World Series between 1998 and 2000, but Pettitte’s role in their success was dwindling. His performances were decent, but far from spectacular.

Ups and downs

By 1998 Pettitte was far from the best player on his team. Reading the stats, he ranked somewhere in the mid-teens among those on the Yankees’ roster. It was a dramatic fall from grace for a player who’d seemed ready to achieve greatness. He improved a little in ’99, and again in 2000 and ’01. Another dip in form came in the two years that followed.

Just a memory

During this period, the Yankees were doing well as a team. Pettitte, to his credit, definitely contributed to their success, but his form was very inconsistent. In between his better moments, he was also responsible for some costly mistakes. The heady heights of his early career were just a memory now.

Going home

By the end of 2003 Pettitte had a desire to go home to Texas. He joined the Houston Astros, who had been doing quite well in recent years. They’d never managed to become truly elite, but it was hoped Pettitte could help change that. He had, after all, achieved quite a lot of success, albeit with some setbacks.

Clemens joins

Roger Clemens actually joined Pettitte at the Astros, which represented quite the coup for the Houston team. They now had two men who’d been to the top. And things went well for Clemens, who performed brilliantly and helped his team make it to the playoffs. Pettitte, meanwhile, was stricken by injuries and failed to make the lineup on a regular basis.

Back at his best

Things seemed to be on the up all of a sudden, though. The 2005 season went really well for Pettitte, as his form skyrocketed. It was the best he’d played in eight years, and his team even reached the World Series. Unfortunately, they couldn’t overcome the Chicago White Sox, falling just short of glory.

Back to New York

At the end of the ’06 season, Pettitte was 34. In theory, he should still have been able to carry on with his baseball career, but he was having doubts. He was even considering retiring. In the end, he kept going — and he even returned to the Yankees. He was back where it all began, but it didn’t exactly go well. The team failed to make the playoffs for the first time in 15 years.

A rebound

After that horrendous season, Pettitte’s form had another improvement. By this time he was 37, so he was more than experienced. He played a massive part in some huge games as the Yankees tasted World Series triumph once again. He even made into the 2010 All-Star team, which was a testament to his form. Injuries, though, limited his number of games.

Nearing the end

Injury ruled Pettitte out for 2011 but he came back the following year. He didn’t play very much, though, thanks to yet more damage to his body: this time, he broke his leg. He recovered, yet again, and returned for 2013. This was to be his last season as a pro baseball player.

The good and the bad

By the end, Pettitte had racked up a whole lot of wins in his career. He’d hit the heights, but he’d also experienced plenty of lows. Is that why he isn’t considered an all-time great of the game? That surely has something to do with it. But there’s also a part of this story that we’ve missed — and it might be enlightening.

The Mitchell report

Looking back over Pettitte’s long career, there’s one episode that we’ve so far omitted — and it’s an important one. At the end of 2007, the Mitchell report was published. This was the fruit of a year-and-a-half-long investigation into drug usage in baseball. And Pettitte was among the 78 players named in the paper.

The truth

This was obviously bad for Pettitte: everything he’d achieved in the game was now under scrutiny. Was he just a common cheat? He arranged a press conference to give his side of the story. On that day in early 2008, he said, “I know that once I have this press conference, and talk to everybody about this and share everything with you, I think the truth will set you free.”

Confession

The truth was that Pettitte really had taken human growth hormone (HGH) in 2002 — and he admitted it. But the reason, he claimed, was more innocent. He’d been injured at the time, and his sole aim had been to recover more rapidly. He stressed that he’d never taken steroids during the course of his career.

Accepting responsibility

In a statement previously published by his agent, Pettitte had already come clean, admitting to his actions having been a mistake. He’d said sorry, but maintained his innocence of any intent to cheat. He’d said, “If what I did was an error in judgment on my part, I apologize. I accept responsibility for those two days.”

The trainer

At the press conference it transpired Pettitte had enlisted the help of his trainer to get the HGH. The same trainer, Brian McNamee, also worked with Roger Clemens, another player named by the Mitchell report. This might all sound like it was breaking rules, but it actually wasn’t: HGH wouldn’t be outlawed in baseball until three years after this episode took place.

Faster healing

Pettitte, in his statement, had elaborated on what had happened. He said, “In 2002 I was injured. I had heard that human growth hormone could promote faster healing for my elbow. I felt an obligation to get back to my team as soon as possible. For this reason, and only this reason, for two days I tried human growth hormone.”

Not looking for an edge

Pettitte went on, “Though it was not against baseball rules, I was not comfortable with what I was doing, so I stopped... This is it — two days out of my life; two days out of my entire career, when I was injured and on the disabled list. I wasn’t looking for an edge. I was looking to heal.”

A lifetime of hard work

Pettitte really tried to emphasize that it had all been just a terrible mistake. He said, “I have the utmost respect for baseball and have always tried to live my life in a way that would be honorable. If I have let down people that care about me, I am sorry, but I hope that you will listen to me carefully and understand that two days of perhaps bad judgment should not ruin a lifetime of hard work and dedication.”

Proper context”

Pettitte concluded, “I have tried to do things the right way my entire life, and, again, ask that you put those two days in the proper context. People that know me will know that what I say is true.” And for what it’s worth, his team, the Yankees, seemed to support their player at that time.

Another confession

Yet come February 2008 Pettitte was forced into another dramatic confession. He admitted he’d used HGH a second time, too, not just in 2002. He’d taken it in 2004, just a year before the substance was outlawed. This time, his confession came in the wake of a full-on congressional hearing on the subject.

Giving an account

Pettitte said, “I have to tell you all the truth. I have to live with myself. And one day I have to give an account to God and not to nobody else of what I’ve done in my life. And that’s why I’ve said and shared the stuff with y’all that I’ve shared with y’all today that I wouldn’t like to share with y’all.”

Out of frustration

Pettitte admitted, “In 2004, when I tore the flexor tendon in my pitching arm, I again used HGH two times in one day out of frustration and in a futile attempt to recover. Unfortunately, I needed surgery on the arm later in the year. I regret these lapses in judgment.”

Two syringes

Pettitte went on to provide a little more context. He said, “My dad had been using it. He ended up bringing me two syringes over to my house. And you know, I injected myself once in the morning and once at night... I did it for that day. And to this day, I don’t know why... I was desperate.”

Casts a shadow

In the end, then, Pettitte is a divisive figure. His career was a mixed bag, yet peppered with periods of greatness. And to top it off, some people think he’s a cheat. In his defense, he didn’t break any rules at the time. But even he regards the HGH episode as a mistake, and it casts a shadow on his legacy.