Joe Torre Leaves The Yanks [A.J. Cordi]

From AJ's (My) Sports Blog:

It's been more than a week of waiting to find out whether or not "Clueless" Joe Torre would be returning as the manager of the New York Yankees. Over the past week, players and fans alike have been begging for owner George Steinbrenner not to fire him.

Meetings have been going on since Tuesday at the Yankees' Florida camp regarding not only Torre's future, but the team's future in general.

Finally, Torre was made an offer: A $5 million 1-year contract, with an additional $1 million bonus for each level of the postseason reached.

Torre responded with a healthy NO!

Torre has been the manager of the Yanks for 12 years now. He brought October to the Yankees every year he was the manager, plus 4 World Series championships and 6 Pennants. I have been a Torre fan since he arrived in New York, and I will continue to be one regardless of where he ends up. As a fan, I can't thank him enough for the joys he brought to the fans.

Additionally, I also have to applaud the way he left the Yankees. Over much debate about whether or not he would be fired, he kept quiet and remained laid back. Then finally, when an offer was made, he walked away from the team - on his own terms! He (probably) had it planned all along, and I can't blame him considering the way Steinbrenner treated the future Hall-of-Famer!

Good luck, Joe, on all future whatevers!

To read the article about Torre leaving the Yanks, click here and/or here. (Note: The articles have been changing as more details are made public.)