Apoc13
05-18-2007, 09:17 AM
For more than a decade, Joe Torre has graced the Yankees with a professionalism that'll someday land him in the Hall of Fame. As calm as Buck Showalter (but without the Machiavellian streak), as street smart as Billy Martin (without the night life) and as likable as Lou Piniella (without the temper). Thanks to Torre, the Yankees have had an unprecedented golden era: it felt like it would last forever.
But the empire is in crisis today, if not in outright chaos. The Red Sox are pulling away from the East and the wild card will soon be a long shot for the Yankees, too. The franchise's signature has always been its winning pedigree, especially in the postseason. Torre's teams were like Hemingway heroes, displaying grace under pressure. At least it used to be that way.
That's why the next six games against the Mets and Red Sox will be as dire as any the Yankees have played since 2001. This is the Bombers' playoff season right now. We'll know in a week whether there's any hope for October. We'll know whether Roger Clemens' return will be rendered moot. Most significantly, we'll know if Torre himself will be a casualty of his team's lethargy.
Yankee executives won't say whether the manager's job is in jeopardy, but no one's issuing any votes of confidence, either. It would be pointless, anyway, since the decision is solely George Steinbrenner's. But there are telltale signs of trouble for Torre, starting with general manager Brian Cashman's stark admission that the season is indeed slipping away.
"I don't want to use the word 'worried,' but we have to start playing to our abilities and we have to do it sooner than later," Cashman said by telephone on Thursday. "It's a long season, but you can play your way out [of the race] early, and we can't allow that to happen."
When asked to describe his state of mind, the general manager said he was "frustrated" although he quickly pointed out, "We could get right back in it" if the Yankees win both series -- or, even more profitably, sweep Boston.
But there's no sign of recovery on the horizon. The Yankee are batting just .232 in the last 10 games, including a miserable performance in Thursday's 4-1 loss to the White Sox. The Bombers were just 2-for-10 with runners in scoring position, out-slugged by the American League's worst offense. The expression on Torre's face during postgame interviews was a cocktail of weariness and helplessness, which is understandable considering how loaded his roster is with on-paper talent.
But that's the problem, isn't it? The Yankees look great, but in reality they're old and fragile. Even worse, they're not hustling, which is all the ammunition the Torre-haters in Tampa need. None other than Tino Martinez says the Bombers are sabotaging their season, let alone their manager, by failing to play hard.
"It seems like too many guys get hurt and take days off, and there's not that really burning desire to win from nine or 10 guys," Martinez told Michael Kay on his ESPN Radio show Wednesday afternoon. "You have two or three guys playing hard every day but you don't see the whole entire team just getting after it night after night."
Martinez isn't around the clubhouse anymore, but he's a certified expert on the early days of the Yankee renaissance, back when the Bombers would beat you simply because they believed it. Tino can recognize hustle (or its absence) when it's staring him in the face. That's why his assessment was so piercing; he's no Yankee basher. In fact, Martinez told Kay, "I'll always wear the pinstripes."
So for Martinez to say there are only two Yankees – Derek Jeter and Jorge Posada – who are fully, emotionally committed to winning, is like saying the walls of the empire are tumbling fast.
"It eats [Jeter and Posada] up inside when the team loses. It drives them crazy when they're [eight] games behind," Tino said Wednesday. "It just seems a lot of [other] guys really don't care."
The Yankees have one more -- or maybe one last – chance to get it right, starting this weekend at Shea. Somehow, Johnny Damon has to stop waving at pitches out of the strike zone (one scout said the other day, "I can't remember him having this many bad at-bats") – just as Bobby Abreu has to lose his crown as America's oldest 33-year-old. Same goes for Hideki Matsui, who looks washed out.
For his part, Cashman says, "I have to focus on what I can do to get this right." But the GM has made his move, signing Clemens to a prorated $28 million deal. The ATM is dry. The roster is frozen with expensive, long-term contracts. Who, for instance, would touch Abreu and the $16 million he's earning this year?
Unfortunately for Torre, he's the most vulnerable component in the equation. This is the last year on his contract, and the way the Yankees are sinking, it might be his last month. Fair or not, the decade of winning goes up in smoke if it's become this hard to reach .500. If Torre has a last stroke of managerial genius in him, he needs it now.
October was always Torre's best month. Suddenly, he's fighting to make it through May.
But the empire is in crisis today, if not in outright chaos. The Red Sox are pulling away from the East and the wild card will soon be a long shot for the Yankees, too. The franchise's signature has always been its winning pedigree, especially in the postseason. Torre's teams were like Hemingway heroes, displaying grace under pressure. At least it used to be that way.
That's why the next six games against the Mets and Red Sox will be as dire as any the Yankees have played since 2001. This is the Bombers' playoff season right now. We'll know in a week whether there's any hope for October. We'll know whether Roger Clemens' return will be rendered moot. Most significantly, we'll know if Torre himself will be a casualty of his team's lethargy.
Yankee executives won't say whether the manager's job is in jeopardy, but no one's issuing any votes of confidence, either. It would be pointless, anyway, since the decision is solely George Steinbrenner's. But there are telltale signs of trouble for Torre, starting with general manager Brian Cashman's stark admission that the season is indeed slipping away.
"I don't want to use the word 'worried,' but we have to start playing to our abilities and we have to do it sooner than later," Cashman said by telephone on Thursday. "It's a long season, but you can play your way out [of the race] early, and we can't allow that to happen."
When asked to describe his state of mind, the general manager said he was "frustrated" although he quickly pointed out, "We could get right back in it" if the Yankees win both series -- or, even more profitably, sweep Boston.
But there's no sign of recovery on the horizon. The Yankee are batting just .232 in the last 10 games, including a miserable performance in Thursday's 4-1 loss to the White Sox. The Bombers were just 2-for-10 with runners in scoring position, out-slugged by the American League's worst offense. The expression on Torre's face during postgame interviews was a cocktail of weariness and helplessness, which is understandable considering how loaded his roster is with on-paper talent.
But that's the problem, isn't it? The Yankees look great, but in reality they're old and fragile. Even worse, they're not hustling, which is all the ammunition the Torre-haters in Tampa need. None other than Tino Martinez says the Bombers are sabotaging their season, let alone their manager, by failing to play hard.
"It seems like too many guys get hurt and take days off, and there's not that really burning desire to win from nine or 10 guys," Martinez told Michael Kay on his ESPN Radio show Wednesday afternoon. "You have two or three guys playing hard every day but you don't see the whole entire team just getting after it night after night."
Martinez isn't around the clubhouse anymore, but he's a certified expert on the early days of the Yankee renaissance, back when the Bombers would beat you simply because they believed it. Tino can recognize hustle (or its absence) when it's staring him in the face. That's why his assessment was so piercing; he's no Yankee basher. In fact, Martinez told Kay, "I'll always wear the pinstripes."
So for Martinez to say there are only two Yankees – Derek Jeter and Jorge Posada – who are fully, emotionally committed to winning, is like saying the walls of the empire are tumbling fast.
"It eats [Jeter and Posada] up inside when the team loses. It drives them crazy when they're [eight] games behind," Tino said Wednesday. "It just seems a lot of [other] guys really don't care."
The Yankees have one more -- or maybe one last – chance to get it right, starting this weekend at Shea. Somehow, Johnny Damon has to stop waving at pitches out of the strike zone (one scout said the other day, "I can't remember him having this many bad at-bats") – just as Bobby Abreu has to lose his crown as America's oldest 33-year-old. Same goes for Hideki Matsui, who looks washed out.
For his part, Cashman says, "I have to focus on what I can do to get this right." But the GM has made his move, signing Clemens to a prorated $28 million deal. The ATM is dry. The roster is frozen with expensive, long-term contracts. Who, for instance, would touch Abreu and the $16 million he's earning this year?
Unfortunately for Torre, he's the most vulnerable component in the equation. This is the last year on his contract, and the way the Yankees are sinking, it might be his last month. Fair or not, the decade of winning goes up in smoke if it's become this hard to reach .500. If Torre has a last stroke of managerial genius in him, he needs it now.
October was always Torre's best month. Suddenly, he's fighting to make it through May.