Pettitte Misses Start with Back Spasms

Yankees #2 starter Andy Pettitte was scratched from his minor league start on Saturday with back spasms. Pettitte's back locked up Thursday and on a positive note, said the back felt better Friday and even better on Saturday. That being said, it still was not worth Manager Joe Girardi, throwing him out there for a spring training start, risking another setback. With the Yankees relying on a rotation that will feature two youngsters in Ian Kenedy and Phil Hughes, as well as questions over how much veteran Mike Mussina has left in the tank, Pettitte is an invaluable part of the staff, and the Yanks can ill afford to lose him for an extended period of time.

FANTASY IMPACT

It is difficult to remember the last time Andy Pettitte went through an entire spring training without some sort of injury. It is near commonplace for Pettitte to get nicked up and have to be pushed back or miss a couple of starts while he readies for the rigors of the long major league season.

The Yankees still believe that Pettitte will be ready for his first start of the season on April 2 against the Blue Jays. Draft him where you normally would, in the middle to late rounds of your fantasy draft. The Yankees do not think this is anything serious, and the fact that Pettitte feels better already is more reason to feel comfortable drafting Pettitte without any worry going into the season. Last season he was among the league leaders in quality starts and managed 15 wins. If he can put up similar numbers this year, he should be inline for another fine season of about 15-18 wins and an ERA in the mid to high 3.00s.