Nolan Ryan Didn't Ask Andy Pettitte About Playing for Rangers

There was a report Monday that the Texas Rangers had expressed interest in signing longtime Yankees southpaw Andy Pettitte. According to the report, team president Nolan Ryan had reached out to Pettitte to gauge his interest in leaving New York for the Lone Star State one more time. Well, apparently this is all news to Nolan Ryan.

Ryan says that he has talked to Pettitte in recent weeks, as Pettitte is a partner in Ryan's company that owns a couple of minor league baseball teams, and he said Pettitte also wanted to wish him luck in the World Series. According to Ryan, when the idea of 2011 came up between the two, it was only to see if Pettitte planned on pitching again next season.

"I asked him if he thought he was going to play in 2011 or retire," Ryan told the Star-Telegram. "He said if he played it would be with the Yankees because he wanted to retire with the Yankees. It wasn't like I was asking him if he wanted to come play for us."

Which makes sense, for the most part. If Pettitte is going to come back for another season, I really don't see him doing it anywhere besides New York either. He may be from Texas, and he may live in Texas, but Andy Pettitte didn't become Andy Pettitte until he was in New York. Like Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera, the idea of him retiring in anything other than pinstripes just doesn't seem natural.

You know, unless he starts demanding a ridiculous amount of money.