Torre remaining as manager of Yankees
NEW YORK (AP) - Joe Torre will remain as manager of the New York Yankees, finally getting the word from owner George Steinbrenner after the team's surprise elimination from the playoffs last weekend.
Torre spoke with Steinbrenner on the telephone Tuesday, shortly before he walked into the interview room at Yankee Stadium and made the announcement.
"He gave me his support," Torre said. "I'm just pleased I'm able to stay on and do this."
The two also spoke on Monday.
"I talked to George yesterday for probably 15, 20 minutes, and we discussed a lot of things: the team, what we do from here and things like that," Torre said.
The Daily News had reported Sunday that Steinbrenner was expected to fire Torre after the Yankees were eliminated by the Detroit Tigers, the Yankees' second straight elimination in the first round of the AL playoffs. The paper said the likely replacement would be Lou Piniella, who served two terms as Yankees manager in the 1980s. On Tuesday, the New York Post reported that Torre's job was safe.
Torre didn't make any public statements Sunday or Monday as camera crews camped outside his home in suburban Westchester.
"I thought I had the cure for cancer or something," Torre said.
While the Yankees won four World Series titles in Torre's first five seasons, they haven't won any since 2000, angering the demanding Steinbrenner. They last reached the World Series in 2003.
"He requires a lot. He expects a lot. We know that," Torre said. "You can't pick and choose the parts you like about working for George Steinbrenner. You have to understand the whole package. He requires us to be the best team out there and to be able to perform like it."
Torre, hired after the 1995 season, has one year remaining on his contract. He said he wasn't sure whether he wanted to manage beyond 2007.
Late in the season and during the playoffs, he made several controversial decisions. He moved right fielder Gary Sheffield to first base when he returned from wrist surgery, and put Hideki Matsui back in left in place of Melky Cabrera when Matsui came back from a broken wrist.
The most debated decision was when he dropped Alex Rodriguez, baseball's highest-paid player at $252 million, to the No. 8 spot in the batting order for Saturday's season-ending 8-3 loss.
Rodriguez was repeatedly booed at Yankee Stadium this season, his third with New York.
"I want to believe that, yes, as far as I'm concerned, Alex Rodriguez is one of the important pieces to this puzzle here," Torre said.
With 1,973 regular-season wins, Torre is 10th on the career list and third among active managers behind Tony La Russa of the St. Louis Cardinals (2,297) and Bobby Cox (2,171) of the Atlanta Braves.
Torre has the longest uninterrupted term for a Yankees manager since Casey Stengel held the job for 12 years from 1949-60. Under Torre, the Yankees have gone 1,079-699. He trails only Joe McCarthy (1,460) and Stengel (1,149) for victories among Yankees managers.
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