Pettitte unsure what his future holds beyond 2013

TAMPA, Fla. -- Mariano Rivera says that he has reached a decision about his plans following this season, but Andy Pettitte learned his lesson by retiring too soon the first time and won't make the same mistake again.

Unlike his teammate Rivera, who strongly hinted at retirement while meeting with the media on Wednesday, Pettitte said that he isn't ready to definitively say what his future holds beyond 2013.

"Well, I can tell you right now as I sit right here, I hope this is it, you know what I'm saying?" Pettitte said. "But having gone through this and done this, I'm not going to shut it down again unless I know for a fact that I'm done with this."

Pettitte sat out for the 2011 season and came out of retirement last spring, making 12 starts with the Yankees and going 5-4 with a 2.87 ERA.

The left-hander said that he still feels the same tugs toward home from his family, but he also has the same desire to work out for a full season and wants to make sure his pitching has been fully exhausted before hanging up his spikes again.

"I don't want to think that this is going to be it or that this is the end," Pettitte said. "I think whenever it is, it'll be an offseason and I'll just know. There may be an injury or something that tells me, 'You can't come back, you can't do it anymore.'

"If that's the case, that's the way it will end. But for right now, I'm trying to keep my mind moving forward and thinking that I can do this. The Yankees are paying me a lot of money. I've got a big responsibility here and I want to uphold that responsibility."