Joe Says No!
Yankees owner George Steinbrenner kicked Joe Torre in his proverbial balls 10 days ago by announcing that the Hall-of-Fame manager [would be fired] if New York lost to Cleveland in the American league Division Series. Today, Torre got his revenge.
Torre essentially said Fuck you to The Boss and his Yankees this afternoon, declining a ridiculous [one-year contract offer] that entailed a $5 million base salary and possibly $3 million more in incentives. Torre would have received $1 million extra if the Yankees made the playoffs, another $1 million if they made the American League Championship Series and the full $8 million if they made the World Series. A trip to the Fall Classic would have also given Torre an $8 million option for a second year.
That sounds like a pretty sweet deal, so it appears Torre never had any intention of staying with the team and just wanted the Yankees to go through their clandestine meetings and the media gauntlet so he could stick it to them in the end. Nonetheless, team executives werent showing signs of bitterness as of Tuesday afternoon. We respect his decision, team President Randy Levin said. We appreciate everything hes done. But it is now time for the New York Yankees to move forward, and we will be doing it very quickly. They better move on quickly, because until they find a new manager, Americas 24-hour news cycle will just keep replaying how Torre took their offer and told them to shove it up their *BEEEEEP.*