Why I prefer Joe Girardi, Reason #325

"Yankees manager Joe Girardi is down in the Dominican Republic this week. He had dinner with Yankees senior Latin staff and visited the coaches on Tuesday. This morning (Wednesday) at the Yankees Latin Beisbol Academy, he gave a speech to the Latin coaches and staff followed by an interactive talk with 55 Latin players and eight players from the ‘06 and ‘07 draft. He then watched a Dominican Instructional League game against Toronto and viewed tryouts."
--Source.

Please, if you will, contrast that with the following.

"Joe Torre never spent hours poring over statistics or videotape like a lot of young managers do these days. He wasn't a workaholic type who obsessed about getting to work earlier than his peers. He would have a nice lunch, and then he would shave cleanly after games -- wins or losses -- as he prepared for a late dinner at a restaurant.

It has never been his style to simmer in the aftermath of success or failure, after all. In an era when managers seem to put in more hours than first-year lawyers or hospital residents, Torre might've put in the fewest office hours of any manager in the game."
--Source

At this point last year, I believe Joe Torre was in Hawaii filming Subway commercials. As I explained to Diana Mao when she interviewed me, the Yankee organizational philosophy is shifting. They are not going to be a development exclusive club like the Oakland A's and they aren't emptying their vaults the same way the Dodgers are. The Yankees are committed to one thing: World Series Championship #27 to be followed by #28, #29 and #30, etc. They realize that with their resources they have far more leverage and capacity to do things than any other club.

I believe that they only began to truly realize that in 2003 when they let Andy Pettitte leave for Houston. That draft pick turned into one very special Philip Hughes. They let Tom Gordon leave for Philadelphia. Tom Gordon was a type A free agent and netted two players, Ian Kennedy and Joba Chamberlain. You may have heard of them. In this year's draft they exclusively "swung for the fences" in selecting only for talent regardless of signability or health concerns. As an organization the Yankees have the most ability to withstand draft choices that are injury risks or have college commitments. Andrew Brackman, Austin Romine, Brad Suttle and Carmen Angelini all say hello. But they still flex their financial muscle in signing Roger Clemens and trading for Bobby Abreu, the move that knocked Boston out of playoff contention in 2006.

Joe Torre didn't see that the organizational winds are changing. Joe Girardi understands what's going on and he wants to be a part of it. The season is still about half a year away but by getting rid of Joe Torre, this organization has already seen massive improvement.