2018 Yankees have a 'chance to do something special,' says Andy Pettitte

Andy Pettitte knows a championship-caliber team when he sees one.

The Yankees' all-time strikeouts leader, who won five World Series and made his first Old-Timers' Day appearance in the Bronx on Sunday, told the New York Post that the franchise might have a new dynasty in the making.

“Being able to see what they’re doing, at least now when I talk to these guys, you can kind of tell them, you got a chance to do something special here,” Pettitte said. “The goal every year is to win a championship, [but] you don’t want to win just one championship. You almost feel like with this group of players, hopefully you can pull off several of them. That’s a lot to start talking about, but hopefully this year it’s a step that the organization can take."

Pettitte, 46, made his major league debut for the Yankees back in 1995. One year later, the team was comprised of veteran leaders and homegrown youngsters, and that blend of players led the franchise to its first world championship in nearly two decades.

Pettitte has drawn parallels between the '96 Yankees and the current squad, which has one of the best records in baseball.

“They’ve got a great mix of veterans and young players, and it’s a good situation," Pettitte told the Post. “It reminds me a lot of what we did when we first came up. “They’ve got a solid, young core nucleus here, and you would have to imagine they’re going to be good for a while... They’re fun to watch. They have so much talent.”

Pettitte spent a decent amount of time at Yankee Stadium this Father's Day weekend. On Friday night, he tossed batting practice prior to the Yankees' matchup with the Tampa Bay Rays, and on Sunday, he pitched an inning and saw three at-bats in the Old-Timers' exhibition game.

Although Pettitte looks too young to be old and too old to be young, he doesn't quite have the itch to return to the game. Out west in his home state of Texas, Pettitte serves as a coach for his youngest son and the local high school team. Plus, he recently became a grandfather. 

“You never really look at yourself like [an old timer], but [pitcher Jonathan] Loaisiga walked into the locker room [Friday], and I introduced myself — I didn’t know if he knew me or not — and he was just staring at me, going, ‘Andy Pettitte,’” he told the Post. “He said, ‘I’ve watched you since I was an itty bitty.’ I said, ‘Goodnight. I’m getting old.’

“The time commitment to do something like this at this level would be a life-changer. But also, as a man you want to have something to do. You want to have purpose in your life, you want to affect people and impact people, especially people younger than you. You feel like you’ve got stuff that you can share with them.”

In 18 seasons, Pettitte won 256 games. He also won an additional 19 games during the postseason, which remains a major league record. 

If you want to connect with Tom Hanslin, email him at thanslin@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @tomhanslin.