no, they mentioned what the NJ paper said.
here's the story.
October 8, 2007
His Job at Stake, Torre Stays Focused
By TYLER KEPNER
The threat was real this time, the consequences dire for Joe Torre if the Yankees were to lose in the division series for the third season in a row. The principal owner, George Steinbrenner, planned to change managers with another first-round loss, and the news reverberated around Yankee Stadium before Game 3 yesterday.
“It’s certainly not something you enjoy having to put up with,” Torre said, when asked about Steinbrenner’s comments to The Record of Hackensack, N.J.
“But the fact of the matter is, it’s what goes with the territory. It’s really not a lot of difference than in the past. If I get caught up in that, I’m really going to have a tough time doing my job, and I don’t think that’s right.”
Torre’s three-year, $19.2 million contract expires Oct. 31, and while the YES broadcaster Joe Girardi has managerial experience, the strong favorite to replace Torre is his bench coach, Don Mattingly, who was recruited by Steinbrenner to join the staff four years ago.
Hiring Mattingly would probably placate the veteran free agents Mariano Rivera and Jorge Posada, and there may be no one in the Yankees’ universe who is more respected within baseball. But Mattingly is also a Torre loyalist.
“It’s obviously an uncomfortable situation for me,” Mattingly said. “I don’t want to be caught in the middle of this. But Joe knows how I feel about him. He knows I would never do anything behind the scenes to back-stab anybody. It’s not my character. It’s not part of me.
“Joe knows I wouldn’t be doing that. My loyalty to him is as long as it has to be — really, forever. He’s taught me tons.”
Mattingly said he had not read Steinbrenner’s comments, but he seemed concerned by the manner in which Torre might be dismissed.
“You want to be sure, whatever happens with him, he needs to be treated with total respect,” Mattingly said. “He’s treated the organization with class, and people look at this organization as a classy organization, and Joe is a big part of that.”
Asked if he wanted to return as manager, Torre, 67, would not respond. He has previously suggested he does want to come back.
“We need to win a game,” Torre said. “If it comes time to address that stuff, then I’ll do it.”
Torre won four World Series in his first five seasons as the Yankees’ manager, and he signed three-year extensions after the 2001 World Series and in April 2004. He has guided the Yankees to the postseason every year, but they were 3-12 in their last 15 playoff games going into last night.
“It’s the players — we haven’t gotten the job done the first two games,” Johnny Damon said. “We are a veteran team. We know what we have to do. We have to go out and play well. A lot can change if we don’t win. We’re not just playing for him. We’re playing for a bunch of players in there. We need to win. That’s the bottom line.”
Starter Mike Mussina said the Yankees always play with the assumption that jobs could be lost if the team does not win the World Series. But he defended Torre’s track record and said letting him go would be unfair.
“It’s my seventh season and we’ve had seven tremendous seasons,” Mussina said. “We’ve been in the postseason every year, we’ve made it to the World Series. It’s not easy to do this year after year after year, and when he’s done it 12 times in a row, I don’t know what more you’d want, honestly.
“I’d play for the guy anytime. We’re the ones that go out on the field and have to perform. And if we don’t perform, it shouldn’t be a reflection of his ability. The reflection should be on us, not on him.
“I don’t think you could ask any more from somebody. He handles every circumstance that comes up, from injuries, from people not performing up to their abilities, to scrutiny, everything, and he’s stood tall and got us to the postseason every year. Once you get to this point, it’s a crapshoot what happens.”
Torre held a team meeting before batting practice and did not address his status. But he said he sensed that the players were in the right frame of mind, and it seemed doubtful that Steinbrenner’s timing would serve as motivation, anyway.
“I don’t know if it really makes that big of a difference,” Mattingly said. “You’d like to have the storybook thing, like, ‘We’ve got to win it for Joe,’ but I don’t think Joe wants that. I think Joe wants us to go out and play our best baseball.”
