Reports: Pettitte To Announce His Retirement This Afternoon

Update, 12:30 pm: The Yankees have made it official, announcing that Andy Pettitte was be retiring at the end of this season. Pettitte also released a statement, which reads as follows:

“I'm announcing my retirement prior to the conclusion of our season because I want all of our fans to know now—while I'm still wearing this uniform—how grateful I am for their support throughout my career.  I want to have the opportunity to tip my cap to them during these remaining days and thank them for making my time here with the Yankees so special.

“I’ve reached the point where I know that I've left everything I have out there on that field.  The time is right.  I've exhausted myself, mentally and physically, and that’s exactly how I want to leave this game.

 “One of the things I struggled with in making this announcement now was doing anything to take away from Mariano’s day on Sunday.  It is his day.  He means so much to me, and has meant so much to my career that I would just hate to somehow take the attention away from him.”

Original: As the Yankees head back to the Bronx for Mariano Rivera's final homestand at Yankee Stadium, it's starting to look like Rivera won't be the only Yankee being celebrated this week.

Joel Sherman of the NY Post was the first to report that 41-year-old left-hander Andy Pettitte is expected to announce this afternoon that he'll be retiring at the end of this season, which is expected to end on September 30th for the Yankees -- Ken Rosenthal was also able to backup this report.

This news is really coming as no surprise as Pettitte, who is the league's oldest starting pitcher, had been expected to make this decision at some point this season, although it was mostly expected to coming during the offseason, not with nine games left to play.

Pettitte is scheduled for two more starts this season, with his last home start for the Yankees coming this Sunday against the San Francisco Giants, and his final start is expected to be during the final series of the season in Houston, near Pettitte's home.

Pettitte is 10-10 this season with an ERA of 3.93 in 28 starts for the Yankees. His 255 wins are also the most for any active player in the league. In the postseason, Pettitte was one of the best, going 19-11 with a 3.81 ERA.

Stay tuned. More details are still to come. Follow @GavinEwbank2013 on Twitter for more updates.