Torre walks off...

clipped from sportsillustrated.cnn.com

So it is official--Joe Torre turned down the Yankees offer to manage the team next season. Are we surprised? I don't think so. What surprises me is the reaction from some of the media. They treat Torre like a god. Yes he led the Yankees to 12 straight playoff appearances. Four World Series Championships. But what have you done for me lately? Baseball long ago stopped being a game and became a business. Owners sign whomever they think will help and when they don't think a player or manager is the right person they move on. Same with players. They move to whichever team will offer the most money. It is a business and should be treated as such.

Torre took a job where anything less than a World Series Championship is considered a failure. He has had the highest payroll of any team. With that offense my wife could manage it. Yes, the pitching had a lot of problems this season. Part of it falls on Torre. He has a reputation as someone who burns out his bullpen every year. The Yankees offered him the highest salary of any manager in the game. Yes, it was a pay cut from last season, but it had some easily reached incentives built in that would have pretty much kept him at par with this season. Pride? Only he know exactly why he turned it down. It was fair. He has been around this game too long to not know how things work...