Tireball.com

Joe Torre may have managed his final game in the Bronx Monday after the New York Yankees lost Game 4 of the ALDS to the Cleveland Indians. Before Game 3 Yankees owner George Steinbrenner stated that Torre would be fired if the Yankees failed to advance.

There’s plenty of reasons to defent Torre but there’s also as many reasons to blame him. The Yankees have not won a World Series since their win in the Subway Series of 2000. Since then the Yankees come up empty despite being in the playoffs the last seven years and an ever increasing payroll.

In 2001 the Yankees came up short to the Arizona Diamondbacks in the World Series, the following season they were outlasted in the ALDS by the Anaheim Angels.

Torre redirected the team to the World Series in 2003 before losing 4 games to 2 to the Florida Marlins. Since then the team has failed to make it that far and even suffered a historic meltdown in the 2004 ALCS against Boston.

Since the meltdown against Boston the Yankees have posted a 4-9 record. The team has also failed to make it past the first round of the playoffs and have become reminiscent of the Atlanta Braves of the 1990’s. The Yankees have had the highest payroll in baseball each of those seasons and spent $189 million this season.

I’ve defended Torre in the past mainly cause I figured he was a good manager, and giving him the benefit of the doubt with four World Series rings. After all I’d do almost anything just to suit up and sit on a bench. Though I have to wonder if maybe it is time for Torre to go.

The Yankees have had a ridiciouls payroll in a seemily yearly attempt to buy the World Series. In addition the team needed an invasion of youth to propel itself to the wild card this season.

Stars such as Jorge Posada (35) and Mariano Rivera (37) are free agents this offseason. In addition the team sent Bernie Williams away before spring training this season. Robinson Cano and Melky Cabrera were the only two regulars under thirty years of age. Chien-Ming Wang (27) as the youngest starting pitcher on the team and they even coached 44 year old Roger Clemens out of retirement.

It’s become more evident this season then last. The Yankees are an old team. Five years ago this could of have been in the World Series but this season they are just five years older. While starters Mike Mussina and Roger Clemens were batteling the effects of a combined 41 years of pitching at the major league level the Yankees found themselves in a catfight just to make it to the playoffs.

Once they got to the playoffs the offense was shutdown and the team was forced to pitch Wang on three days rest. It should come as no surprise that the Yankees were manhandeled by the Indians the way they were.

In total Torre managed 1942 regular season games for the Yankees and won 1173 of them. Managing the Yankees was Torre’s fourth managerial stop but his most productive by far, resulting in 4 World Series rings.