NEW YORK -- New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner backed manager Joe Torre and GM Brian Cashman on Monday, challenging players and staff "to show me and the fans what they are made of" following a start he termed "clearly not acceptable." Steinbrenner previously had refused comment on his team, which went 1-5 against the Boston Red Sox the past two weekends and dropped into last place in the AL East at 9-14. "The season is still very young, but up to now the results are clearly not acceptable to me or to Yankee fans," Steinbrenner said in a statement. "However, Brian Cashman, our general manager, Joe Torre, our manager, and our players all believe that they will turn this around quickly. "I believe in them. I am here to support them in any way to help them accomplish this turnaround. It is time to put excuses and talk away. It is time to see if people are ready to step up and accept their responsibilities. It is time for all of them to show me and the fans what they are made of. "Let's get going. Let's go out and win and bring a world championship back to New York. That's what I want." After Sunday's 7-4 loss to Boston, Yankees captain Derek Jeter said criticism of Torre was misplaced. "It's unfair," Jeter said. "There's no way he's responsible for us performing. He's not hitting for us. He's not pitching for us. He puts the best players out there on the field, gives us an opportunity to win. We're just not doing the job. That's unfair, and it should stop. ... He's doing a great job this year. We just haven't done the job on the field. That's the bottom line."
Wow, George has gone totally soft in his old age. Okay Joe, you got one more chance. I highly doubt George is going to allow this continue though. Yes, it is the players who are failing, but someone is running the show. When it takes the owner of the team to provide the "motivation" for a team, there is a severe problem. Oh well, strap in fellas. Looks like it's going to get really bumpy from here on out.
Ahhh . . . . excellent. That's the stuff. I'm like a crackwhore when it comes to a good Steinbrenner statement.
What I would like to know is why isn't "Captain" Jeter reaming the team out instead of defending the manager. Isn't it the job of the captain to lead the team, hold meetings and tell people what they are doing wrong? Or is captain, in his mind, just another reason to get a couple mil more a year? When has he ever acted like a captain on this team?
Of course Cashman kept his job, he's in total control and running everything now... remember?!?! What do you expect him to fire himself? He was running those meetings this weekend in Tampa... from NY.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/17/s...3ae7dac1&ex=1313467200&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss This times article from last August dances around the health issue.
Do you watch Entourage? Ari looked pretty soft the first couple of episodes but he's back now. Bad analogy, but you guys will be ok.
Actually I don't watch the show. As for us being okay, I don't question us being in the race later this year. There's too much raw talent to not compete. The problem is, getting there, with no hope of doing anything, is tiresome. I want nothing more than to see a Subway Series, and I really thought we were going to get one this year coming in. The chances of that are slimming by the day though.
Actually, that looks exactly like the want-ad for a MANAGER. Someone might want to pass the memo on to Torre.
