NEW YORK — Pitcher Andy Pettitte and the New York Yankees are nearing agreement on a one-year contract in the range of $10 million to $12 million, a person familiar with the negotiations said Tuesday. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because talks are ongoing. Pettitte, who turns 41 in June, retired after the 2010 season and came back this year and signed a contract guaranteeing $2.5 million. He went 5-4 with a 2.87 ERA in 12 starts, missing nearly three months with a broken left leg after he was hit by a liner drive off the bat of Cleveland's Casey Kotchman broke his left fibula on June 27. He would join CC Sabathia, Hiroki Kuroda, Phil Hughes and Ivan Nova in the Yankees' projected starting rotation, with David Phelps also a possibility. New York also is negotiating a deal with closer Mariano Rivera, who turns 43 Thursday. The MLB career saves leader was limited to nine games this year after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee in a freak training incident on May 3. Miller dies at 95 Marvin Miller, the founding chief of the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) who changed the landscape of sports by pioneering free agency for players, died Tuesday at the age of 95, the union said. Miller, who used the collective bargaining process and some stormy work stoppages to win players the right to become free agency along with vastly improved pensions, health benefits and pay, died at his New York home after a battle with liver cancer, the union said. “All players - past, present and future - owe a debt of gratitude to Marvin, and his influence transcends baseball,” current union head Michael Weiner said in a statement. “Marvin, without question, is largely responsible for ushering in the modern era of sports, which has resulted in tremendous benefits to players, owners and fans of all sports. “His legacy will live on forever.” Miller, who led the union from 1966-82, battled the club owners in the courts and at the bargaining table to eliminate MLB's long-standing reserve clause that had made players the property of the team beyond their contracts. Through his efforts baseball players gained the freedom to sell their services in a virtually unrestricted market after satisfying an initial term of service. Beginning in 1976, players were able to hit the open market, forever changing the way teams could build their rosters, and the success of the baseball players union fueled collective bargaining advances by unions in other major team sports. — Agencies
