There was a report in Newsday yesterday that Andy Pettitte is leaning towards leaving the Bronx at the end of the season, when he becomes a free agent:

Since last offseason, and continuing through this 2003 campaign, Andy Pettitte has told friends that he will leave the Yankees when he becomes a free agent this winter. In these conversations, he has expressed a desire to escape the Yankees’ increasingly chaotic atmosphere; he has lamented the departures of teammates such as Paul O’Neill and Scott Brosius, whom he considered good friends; and he has longed to be closer to his Deer Park, Texas, home, where his family resides.

Clemens, his best friend on the current team, intends to retire. Yankees pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre, with whom Pettitte has developed a father-son relationship during the past eight years, could retire, or he could be fired. Torre also could be let go, if the Yankees fail to meet chaos-starter George Steinbrenner’s expectations this postseason.

Funny, but Pettitte had a lot of pressure to prove himself this year, and he did just that by winning 20 games and having a great second half. He pitched a great game last night. If there are a handful of teams fighting for his services in the off season what are the chances that the Yankees will over pay to keep in him pinstripes?