Pettitte will return for 2009 season

NEW YORK -- Andy Pettitte and the Yankees agreed Monday to a $5.5 million, one-year contract that brings the left-hander back to New York.

Pettitte can make an additional $6.5 million on performance bonuses and bonuses based on time on the active roster. Late last year, New York had offered a deal that would have guaranteed Pettitte $10 million, down from the $16 million he earned last year.

He joins a starting rotation that already includes CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, Chien-Ming Wang and Joba Chamberlain. The deal raised the Yankees' projected opening-day payroll to $196.8 million for 17 players with agreements.

-- AP