With the Major League Baseball off-season fast approaching, it’s hard to think that the New York Yankees aren't going to have a completely different look come next season. The front office, mainly George Steinbrenner (at right), is ready to make drastic moves to completely revamp the team. The most influential moves being getting rid of long time manager Joe Torre, who in his 12 seasons with the Yankees has made it to six World Series and won four of them. He has made it to the playoffs every single year he has managed the Yankees, but still, the front office is calling for him to be fired. And if Joe Torre leaves, what other Yankees may leave along with him?
Before Game 3 of the ALDS this past week, George Steinbrenner issued an ultimatum to Joe Torre (pictured at left) – win this series or you’re fired. What kind of front office does that? Already down two games in a best of five series, the Yankees had their backs against a wall. And on top of that, the starting pitcher of the night was an aging Roger Clemens, who lasted all of two innings. The next day, Clemens was placed on the disabled list for the rest of the series. Now Joe Torre had a lot of talent on his team, no one is going to argue with that, but he also had a lot of aging and one-sided talent. The starting rotation was old, with no clear-cut ace. The lineup was filled with a lot of big bats, but a lot of the guys who swung a big stick were a liability on defense. While George Steinbrenner did indeed pay for the best hitting team in baseball, $215 million dollars a season to be exact, he left his manager with gaping holes to fill and make up for. This post-season could see the departure of such Yankees as Jorge Posada, Roger Clemens, Mike Mussina, Mariano Rivera, Jason Giambi, and Alex Rodriguez. Rodriguez and Mussina have the ability to opt out of their contracts, but that decision could be based highly on the firing of Joe Torre. Replacing all of that talent would be extraordinarily difficult. Alex Rodriguez is possibly the best player in the game. Mariano Rivera is one of the most dominant closers in the game. Mike Mussina and Roger Clemens, while still old, have the ability to anchor a team’s starting rotation if healthy. Replacing these players will not be easy, and as a result of this, we could very well be seeing the end of the Yankee dynasty.
George Steinbrenner accepts nothing less than winning from his team. However, the near future may become highly frustrating for him as he tries to rebuild this beat down Yankees squad with only his checkbook. With the possibility of so many stars leaving the team, it could be a while before the Yankees are seen as a perennial powerhouse. And this fact is going to be hard to accept for a lot of New York fans, which have become so accustomed to winning over the years. But who is to blame for this complete overhaul that is just waiting in the wings? No, it’s not that man that is going to lose his job here in the next week or so, it’s the man who will be firing him. George Steinbrenner’s demand for success and need to stop at nothing to win has caused this turmoil in the Bronx, and getting this team out of this hole may take a small miracle.
