Yankees pitcher Andy Pettitte will retire after this season.

Yankees pitcher Andy Pettitte will retire after this season.

The team announced Pettitte's decision in a news release Friday, hours before opening its final homestand. The 41-year-old left-hander initially retired after the 2010 season, but he sat out only one year before returning to the Yankees.

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

In a nice bit of symmetry, Pettitte is scheduled to make two more starts this season — one at Yankee Stadium and the other in his hometown of Houston.