Now no Andy? It's been a raggedy offseason

Eventually, Andy Pettitte will get the respect he deserves from the fans and the historians: great Yankee, very good pitcher, superb teammate.

As he officially announces his retirement Friday, however, the lefthander will inherit a more immediate legacy.

He's the final domino in what has been the worst Yankees offseason in a long time.

Their overall organization is strong, but with Pettitte officially off the board, the Yankees face a potential "bridge" season in 2011.

Actually, the Throgs Neck, Robert F. Kennedy and Whitestone bridges put together might not cover the ditch that is the current starting rotation.

A great deal can happen in a baseball season. You certainly don't write off anyone in February, especially the team willing to spend more than $200 million on player talent.

But my goodness, it takes neither a psychic nor Hall of Fame front-office guru Pat Gillick to be very skeptical about the Yankees' chances this season. Especially when you consider the Red Sox's improvements (most notably Carl Crawford and Adrian Gonzalez) and Tampa Bay's still impressive well of young talent and interesting gambles on Johnny Damon and Manny Ramirez.

To think, a big topic of the higher-ups' meeting last fall was how they could fit Pettitte, Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera and Cliff Lee under a budget that Hal Steinbrenner wanted to keep at a similar number (the $205-million range). They should have such problems now.

Lee often has baffled the Yankees on the field these last few years, but that's Little League stuff compared to the number he pulled on them by jilting them for the Phillies. The lefty was supposed to take the Yankees' money and by doing so, 1) Give his pal CC Sabathia a co-ace; 2) Provide Phil Hughes and A.J. Burnett room for error; and 3) Entice Pettitte to come back for another run at the World Series.

In December, as the Yankees pursued Lee, Pettitte laid out his plans to a Yankees friend: If Lee came aboard, Pettitte would return, acknowledging the club's improved chances at another title. If Lee went elsewhere, however, "I'll stay home," he said.

That proved to be the case, although Pettitte worked out these last few weeks to ensure that his tank was sufficiently empty - that he would have no regrets.

As frustrated as the Yankees are, they can't second-guess themselves much, either. Each winter brings its own features and challenges, and in this instance, there simply wasn't a good Plan B after Lee.

Signing Crawford wouldn't have made much sense, not when the Yankees already have a very good outfield in Brett Gardner, Curtis Granderson and Nick Swisher.

Zack Greinke and Matt Garza weren't realistic trade targets, Greinke because of questions about his New York adaptability and Garza because the Rays weren't going to hand him over to their AL East rivals.

Really, you can argue that the Yankees' biggest expenditure on another team's player, the $35 million over three years they invested in Rafael Soriano, only made things worse. It was a panic move, driven by the ill-conceived notion that the Yankees needed to do something to appease their fan base.

Therefore, the Yankees march forward with the ultrareliable Sabathia; Hughes, who has to duplicate or improve upon his encouraging 2010; Burnett, who has great stuff but doesn't know how to use it, and a grab bag featuring Ivan Nova, Sergio Mitre and veterans Bartolo Colon and Freddy Garcia.

Manuel Banuelos and Dellin Betances head a group of promising young pitchers, none of whom appears ready to help the big-league club in 2011 - unless it's as a trade chip.

Hence the uncertainty. Hence the reality that, when Pettitte appears at Yankee Stadium Friday to celebrate his career, the real man in the spotlight will be general manager Brian Cashman, facing queries about what's next.

Pettitte spent most of his career in the shadow of other people, so that won't be new for him. This will, though: He'll be discussing a Yankees team that is a decided underdog.