[Alberta's Child]

Unfortunately for the Yankees, they're going to find out that the only guy who can manage this team effectively has just walked out the door.

All the fans and media types who were bitching and moaning about Joe Torre's "failures" in recent years are going to wish they could turn back the clock in the not-too-distant future when the team starts to miss out on the playoffs on a regular basis.

Wow, what a burden to deal with each year for that $5-7 million, while getting to fill out a lineup card of nothing but current and ex-All Stars. Take a hike.

Right -- but that cuts both ways. Wow -- what a burden for the Yankees organization to deal with . . . 12 consecutive years in which they only made the playoffs 12 times, they only went to the World Series 6 times, and they only got 4 World Series championships along the way.

Baseball fans in any other city would love to have "problems" like this.

[RightField]

The Yankees should have kept Joe and hired back Chris Chambliss. They haven't won anything without Chambliss as either a player or coach since 1977. (Yankees lost World Series in 1981 when he was with the Braves. Yankees fired Chambliss after 2000 season, and they haven't won a World Series since he's been gone.)

And, there's always the Hillary curse!

[PzLdr]

Guys who could manage the Yankees [off the top of my head]: In house- Joe Girardi, maybe Larry Bowa. From outside the organization- Bobby Valentine [my choice], Lou Pinella [if they could get him, and if he wanted the job].

Torre did a great job in ‘06- using the personnel Stick put on the field, and the system Showalter built. BUT, one wonders how long Jeter, Posada and Mo would have been up if Joe had been in control longer [he’s ‘not comfortable’ with rookies].

And Showalter’s system got engraved in stone, with the added Torre fillip of starters going 6 [and being the age of 35 - except Andy Pettite], bullpens getting burnt up, Rookies and non Torre loyalists getting benched or sabotaged, or both [read Kenny Lofton]. Torre had a miserable record as a manager before he got to New York for a reason. He’s not that good, and he didn’t have the teams George fielded to cover his weaknesses. Let’s see how good he does somewhere else.

[pepsionice]

Lets be honest...over the past 30 years in New York...only Billy Martin and Joe Torre were capable of managing such a team of over-paid stars. Whoever gets the job next...will be fired before the end of the 2008 season.

As for Joe? I’m betting that Bobby Cox of Atlanta steps down or retires by the end of December...and Joe comes back to Atlanta. The Braves will pick up three or four decent players in the winter period, and suddenly be very productive in 2008...winning the world series under Joe Torre. A dream? Perhaps...but stranger things have happened.