That is what Joe Torre had to say about returning to manage next season. Okay, so it is not quite as stirring of a sound byte as Patton’s promise to the Phillipines (edit: gerbil, you are an idiot. Signed, future gerbil), but Torre’s quote in a story by George King in the NY Post has a ring to it, especially since "a ring to it" may be exactly what it would take despite Steinbrenner’s assurances at the start of spring training. Cashman says Torre will have to wait until after the season, just like Mo, Jorge, and in theory, ARod. How well must the Yankees do in ’07 for Joe to keep his job from your perspective? From Stein’s? Maybe it will be holding on too long, but I think I would like to see Torre manage the Yankees through their move across the street.
I’d Return
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If the Yankees make it to the WS, no matter the outcome, Torre should remain.
It was Douglas MacArthur that said, “I will return”.
Oops. That’s what I get for posting before coffee.
I don’t think Steinbrenner has too much of a role anymore. Whispers, and his lack of visibility, suggest his health is more serious than we know. Being a Sox fan, I’m supposed to “hate” Steinbrenner, and “I do” for obvious reasons, but I do like him as a character, and I’m sad to see his diminished role.
Point being that with Steinbrenner no longer being in control, I don’t think it’s as simple as no WS = no Torre ’08. If they don’t make it, the problem is with their lack of Major League pitching depth, not with the manager, and I’m sure Cashman will recognize that.
But if Torre did go, who’d replace him? I can’t think of any other candidates with the name recognition to replace one of the greats. Perhaps Mattingly. I’m not convinced that his resume warrants it, but I don’t know too much about him.
Anyway, Patton would have said it but he was too busy kicking the German’s butts after they bombed Pearl Harbor.
Remember that time when Lou Piniella was almost the Yankees’ manager? *sigh* Miss those days…
“Point being that with Steinbrenner no longer being in control, I don’t think it’s as simple as no WS = no Torre ’08. If they don’t make it, the problem is with their lack of Major League pitching depth, not with the manager, and I’m sure Cashman will recognize that.
But if Torre did go, who’d replace him?”
Too bad this clear-headed rational analysis of this topic doesn’t seem to exist anywhere in Yankeeland. This issue, along with A-Rod, is probably one of the most overhyped non-story in all of sports.
Why would they fire Joe Torre? The media and many fans seem to be operating under a presumption that just doesn’t exist anymore. THE YANKEES FAILURE TO WIN A WS DOES NOT HERALD MAJOR STRUCTURAL CHANGES IN THE ORGANIZATION. Get it everyone?!? This isn’t the 70’s and 80’s and Joe Torre is not Billy Martin. The media, every season, starts with this same BS drumbeat and ABSOLUTELY NOTHING COMES OF IT.
Stop wasting our time with this nonsense. Seriously. (directed at the MLB collective, not gerbil specifically)
I have a question, and I’m not trying to start a flame war…why is Torre so highly regarded? I’ve wondered about this for a long time…is he a better in-game manager then I think? Is it all about the way he handles the media and manages the clubhouse? I’m too young to really remember the 90’s dynasty…well, I remember the dynasty as a boy with a passing interest in baseball as far as it concerned the Red Sox, but Yankee clubhouse dynamics and bullpen management? Not so much…
“Germans?”
Yes, Germans!
Meanwhile, it’s NYY 3 MIN 2 top nine, two outs, and Miggy hits one up the middle for a single.
Drat. Broken bat single makes it first/second, but a fc ends the yankee 9th.
During the early years of the dynasty, Torre is pretty masterful with his bullpen management. He had the right guys in in high leverage situations; Some people attribute that to Zimmer’s presence beside him. They say he was more willing to take risks and that rubbed off on Joe. But, the respect that is held for Torre mostly has to do with his media savvy, and his ability to protect his players (until recently) from Steinbrenner and the wolves in the media.
Britton on for the ninth. grounder 4-3 for the first out. He then walks Rodriguez on four pitches. Josh Rabe up.
is should be was.
Rabe pops out to shallow right center for the second out. Tyner, running for Rodriguez, steals swecond. Matt Tolbert singles to center, scoring Tyner; Tolbert to second on the play. Tie game. Then an E4 to allow the winning run to score. 4-3 Twins, final. YUCK!
God, Britton needs to stay in AAA. I was kinda excited about him at the time of the trade, but I can’t stand the look of him now.
Still, not having Jaret Wright is so worth the price.
I’ve gotten the impression that Torre and Francona are pretty similar. They both are highly respected by their players and are excellent clubhouse managers, but perhaps a bit lacking in their in-game skills. Just the idea I’ve gotten from reading game threads and whatnot…
The first NY baseball I get to watch this year is the final inning of a game where they blow a one run lead for a loss. Terrific.
lp, your point is well made, but this is the first time that Torre has made a statement about his intentions after his current contract (that I am aware of), a fairly un-Torre-ish thing for him to do. I found it an interesting story from that perspective in and of itself. Plus, I got the chance to rewrite history in the name of alliteration.
paul- i don’t think yf’s like you comparing sox and yanks. ST numbers would prove torre is far superior to tito. as for the future….i think mattingly is pretty commited to a lifetime of ringlessness. so that leaves girardi, who will work well with the abundance of youth the yankees put in the lineup day in and day out.
“I have a question, and I’m not trying to start a flame war…why is Torre so highly regarded?”
I would also add to Nick’s response that Torre could also handle the players vs. themselves. That was a trait that Steinbrenner thought back in ’95 Buck Schowalter lacked that would keep the Yankees from winning it all. Torre can keep the egos in line, for the most part.
Also, through the 90s dynasty, Torre had the knack of putting the right pinch-hitter up in the tough spot during the post-season.
And AG, I hear what you’re saying. But I think this story is actually a follow-up to a typical Information Age non-story. You know the type that started appearing about six or seven years ago where headlines and pieces would report the absence of news like: NO STATEMENT FROM TORRE ON FUTURE or EDWARDS WILL NOT MAKE A DECISION ON HIS CAMPAIGN TODAY
To me the absence of news is not newsworthy. I think it merely serves as a placeholder in the age of the 24 hr news network and the internet, suckering the reader to click-through. And with the Yanks, the media is harping on an age gone by to generate this stuff. The Yankee clubhouse just isn’t as exiting as the Bronx Zoo used to be and George has taken a backseat. Essentially, in a tabloid world, Steinbrenner in his old age has become less tabloid worthy.
If the Yanks don’t win this year, I don’t think the organization will have a fire sale. It hasn’t really done that for some time now.
Gerbil, I was quoting Otter.
In 2004, I saw a video montage of the Sox 4-0 run set to Bluto’s speech. Briliant. Too bad I can’t find it on Youtube.
> Gerbil, I was quoting Otter.
>
> In 2004, I saw a video montage of the Sox 4-0 run set to Bluto’s speech. Briliant. Too bad I can’t find it on Youtube.
I am 0-2 at the plate today, was unavailable for a good part of the grapefruit season due to an unfortunate freak accident involving a Foreman Grill, a bag of Pop-Rocks, and a Flow-bee, and expect to get sent down or released before the rosters are finalized for the final YFSF masthead heading into the reggalar.
I would love to see that montage.
damn.. was going to include a “he’s on a roll” line in that Germans link that might have saved me.
“I… expect to get sent down or released”
I don’t know Gerbil, you seem to be a pretty good 25th guy to me.
Now I have what is called a “sinking feeling”, since YFSF currently sports a five-man rotation, but then again, “so you’re saying I have a chance…”
We do have an extra YF on the roster … *cough*
Jeezuz, if AG is the 25th man, then I must be the bat boy.
“so you’re saying I have a chance…”
Ace Ventura? Dumb and Dumber?
gerbil > *feels uncomfortable, stands in the corner, trying to blend*
Tyrel: Bingo, Lloyd.
anyone see this?
http://www.projecta13.com/index.html
mindhead
that site is oddly relaxing. Hey, I ain’t going to make fun of it. Seems like a nice positive thinking dude.
It does have a scientology feel somehow. It’s the futuristic snippets of music I think
” I’m too young to really remember the 90’s dynasty…”
God, I feel old all of a sudden…