Follow Up

Here's a quick follow-up on my last post. Joe Buck, the lead baseball announcer on Fox just echoed some of the things I said in my previous blog and in fact expanded on many of them. Buck, while using a podium infinitely higher than I have here, credited Torre with much of the success the Yankees have achieved the past 15 years. Think about it. Torre oversaw four world titles which led to the creation of the so-called 'Evil Empire.' The cable network Yes, the new Yankee Stadium and the fact that the franchise can spend gobs of money to field an all-star team each season.

I hate to harp on this point as I have no posted two consecutive times on the same subject. While I am a proud Yankee fan, I am still disgusted with the way the organizations 'brain trust' ran Torre out of town. Michael Kay, the lead announcer on Yes, makes light of the event saying that with the Yanks winning another title last year and Torre firmly entrenched with the Dodgers the incident is int he past and everyone has moved on. Maybe this is true for Kay who is on the Yankee payroll and in addition to announcing games hosts his own talk show on the Yes network. But for fans like myself who grew up watching and playing baseball in the 90s, you get an emotional attachment to the players and managers that you see on so many lazy Sunday afternoons. This is especially true of a guy like Joe Torre.

Torre certainly does not need Buck or myself to come rushing to his defense - he can handle himself and never backs out of questions from detractors. But it's always nice to someone like Buck call out an organization on an incident that they try to pretend is long past.

For the full story on what went down between Torre and the Yanks, check out the Torre and Tom Verducci co-authored The Yankee Years. Yes it's got a bitter tone and is a little biased but nnot so much that it blurs truth from fiction. It is the story of the rise and fall of the Yanks under Torre and is a great read for any baseball fan.

A Weekend with Two Old Friends

Tonight in Los Angeles two of basbeall's biggest ex-rivals will meet under the bright lights of Dodgers Stadium. During the golden age of New York basbeall (the 1950s), the Brooklyn Dodgers met the Yankees in the World Series seemingly every year. This time there's nothing on the line but bragging rights. But for the fans and beat writers, tonights game is frought with plenty of story lines and drama.

In addition to the fact that it's the renewal of a classic rivalry, the main story here is that it's a dual-reunion of sorts for two men Yankees fans might be a little familiar with.

The first is Manny Ramirez, one of the best clutch hitters and a noted Yankee-killer during his time in Bean Town with the Red Sox. During the 2003 and 2004 seasons (and post-seasons) it seemed every time Manny and his pal David Ortiz came up to bat they delivered clutch hits. Now we all know both Manny and Big Papi, like so many players of this era, are former-steroid users. While they still strike some fear into the hearts of opposing pitchers, they're not quite the same as the earlier portion of the decade.

The next man who is reuniting with the Yanks tonight is an old friend, who was forced out of pinstripes too soon because of a falling out with the organizations leadership. Joe Torre came to the Yankees in 1996 with the dubious distinction as having played/managed in the most games of anybody who failed to reach the post-season. In 12 years in the Bronx, Torre won six AL pennants and four world championships - and reached the playoffs every year.

In his first year, Torre impressed and delighted the cold, hardened Yankees fans as well the owner George Steinbrenner with his wit and sense of humor. His likable personality was easy to root for, a nice contrast from the high-spending and high-tempered Steinbrenner. I was very saddened when Joe was forced out a few years back. I've spoken to some fellow fans who act as if he got what was coming to him. I disagree. But I have my memories of the parades down the Canyon of Heroes (seeminlgy annual affairs when Torre was manager) to console me. And I will definitely be watching every out of this weekend's series.