Skip to main content
Like
Create new Glog
previous
next
Email share
20 views | 0 likes | 0 reposts
The Yankee Years
In 1996, Joe Torre became the new manager of the New York Yankees after just being fired from the St. Luis Cardinals that June. Joe had been fired three times and had a losing record of (894-1,003) and also without a postseason series victory. Joe was the last choice for Steinbrenner to be the manager after the 1995 season and Joe did not receive a warm greeting either being called “ Clueless Joe.” Joe managed the year relaxed, feeling no pressure because he had nothing to loose except getting fired again and he had already been there three times so he felt no worry. He would lead the 1996 Yankees to a World Series Championship that was not easily won having to go through the Braves in the end. The Yankees in 1996 were not the usual prototype World Series Championship team. They didn’t rely on any one player because nobody on the team hit 30 homeruns, collected 200 hits or stole 20 bases. There offense was ranked 9th in the American league and there pitching was ranked 5th in era. They won close games playing small ball with squeezes, sacrifices and clutch hitting. Joe Torre cleared any doubts in the mind of George Steinbrenner with a ring in his first year as manager of the Bombers. The year of 1998 brought many things to baseball like the most Winn ingest team of all time in the Yankees. It also brought on the uprising of steroids in the game. It was the first year the league had four players with at least 50 homeruns. But year after year the commissioners of the league did nothing about the problem of steroids watching the size of players bodies grow bigger and bigger by the year. Baseball became obsessed with hitting the ball farther and farther and throwing the ball faster and faster. “Everybody around baseball did what they could possibly do. It was the survival of the fittest.” Said one former All-star and steroid user. More and more players started using performance enhancing drugs so eventually people that never wanted to use steroids had to just to be able to compete with the new level of play in the league. In 2000 the Yankees had about 10 players that had been using steroids including Grimsley, Knoblauch, Denny Neagle, Clemens, Canseco and Pettitte and a few others. The Yankees were not the only team with many players using steroids they just happened to win the World Series and be in the spotlight. George Steinbrenner, the owner of the Yankees, would do just about anything to win a World Series and he wants to win it every year or it’s not a successful season. Intimidation was a big part of Steinbrenner’s persona and leadership package. He wanted everyone to know and remember that he’s the boss. Someone could sense when he was lurking around because all of the employees would grow tense and anxious. Steinbrenner would always try to tell Torre what to do by intimidation but Torre always knew how to stand up to him and calm him down. In 1997 Torre brought in Ramiro Mendoza to start the fourth inning against Minnesota in relief with an 8-2 lead. He gave up three runs in three innings. The Yankees still won the game 9-6 but not comfortably for George. George then called Bob Watson to tell him that he wanted Mendoza shipped down to the minor leagues and to relay the message to Joe Torre. So Watson called Torre to send the message. “Just make sure that George knows that when we do it and the writers ask me why, I will tell them that George wanted to do it- that he wanted to send him out. I didn’t.” Torre told Watson. George suddenly changed his mind when receiving Torre’s message. One of George’s tactics was to try and make Torre feel uncomfortable because he wanted that control over him. So Torre did his best not to allow Steinbrenner to make him feel uncomfortable, this frustrated Steinbrenner because it undermined the control that he sought. One thing that George did always ask from Joe was his assurance that they would come out on top or that everything was alright when they were down. Torre would always reassure and convince him everything would turn out fine. The day that Aaron Boone’s car was in the repair shop was the beginning of the A-rod era with the Yankees. Boone’s car was in the shop all day so he couldn’t get his normal work out in for the day which opened opportunity for him to receive a phone call from a friend to go play some basketball. Aaron would leave the little pick up game with torn ligaments in his left knee. The Yankees started looking for a third baseman when receiving the idea from Scott Boras that Alex Rodriguez would be interested in moving over to third to play for the Yankees. So they traded Alfonzo Soriano and some other players for Alex Rodriguez. When Alex came over he was concerned with his appearance and statistics and all of the individual stuff. Maybe all of those things came from him having the largest contract in baseball history. When Alex came to New York it became strained in the Yankee clubhouse. It didn’t start well when before coming Alex stuck a dagger into Jeter’s side when he ragged on him saying that he was blessed with talent around him during the championship years and that he never had to lead a team he could just go out and play and have fun and hit second in the lineup which is way different than hitting third or fourth. Still A-rod did his best to try and fit in the Yankee culture and sometimes not being himself. Teammates started calling him A-fraud behind his back. “He was a Phony.” Said Mike Borzello. Rodriguez soon realized that he didn’t need to be anyone else than himself because New York could sniff out a phony and they did. Another problem that Alex has been criticized for is his performance in the postseason. Alex hit a low .245 in the postseason with the Yankees and a .136 in the 2008 postseason. The Yankees went 4-13 through that stretch which cost them series losses to the Red sox, Tigers and Indians. One thing that Alex never was criticized on is his work ethic. Joe Torre says he’s the best player in the game for a reason and that’s his work ethic. He’s always working out before and after the games and nonstop throughout the year. One night about 10 minutes before the first pitch of a game Alex walks in with blood dripping from his hands and knees. He explained that he was running full speed on the treadmill when the belt broke and he fell skidding his hands and knees and thrown into the wall. Who in baseball runs full speed on a treadmill right before a game? “Nobody has ever worked harder in my memory than this guy.” Torre said.
4 World Series Titles 6 Pennants
