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Who’s To Blame? Part 2: Joe Girardi
By Frank Negron Jr. on September 13th, 2008 11:41 AM |
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As I’ve stated before there are many factors that led to this disappointing 2008 season. Offense, defense, pitching, manager, general manager. Today we focus on Joe Girardi.
“I take responsibility for it, that’s the only way I know how to do it,” Girardi said. “Obviously, my job is to get the most out of everyone.”
Well it appears he didn’t. Somewhere along the way I believe he lost his players. Melky Cabrera had a good April, then disappeared. Robinson Cano forgot that he was the second coming of Rod Carew in the first half, and even at times in the second half. Those are two players that played well under Joe Torre, oops, I shouldn’t have mentioned that name. More on him later. Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy were absolute busts. Kennedy didn’t seem bothered by his last performance in Anahiem where he was rocked again and thought he pitched well. That got him a first class ticket back to the minors. Even through the let downs, Girardi has done well with the hand he was dealt.
Andy Pettitte, Mariano Rivera, Derek Jeter, Mike Mussina and Brian Bruney were asked about Girardi’s performance and praised him. Others on the team chose not to comment. Hmm. Not good. That right there shows you how the clubhouse seems divided. That was never the case under Mr Torre. Girardi’s biggest mistakes might’ve been trying to mix and match the lineup too much. Also his always optimistic attitude has come off as a joke. He’s told the media his players were fine and then those players magically got hurt within days, if not hours.
That guy in L.A. Joe Torre is sitting pretty at the top of the NL West while Girardi’s Yanks sit in fourth place. Had Torre delivered a fourth place team in September he would surely be out the door by now, but since Girardi is handpicked by Brain Cashman and given the ok by the Steinbrenner family, his job is safe…..for now.
“Joe has done a good job, he had to deal with a lot,” Cashman said of the Yankees losing Jorge Posada, Hideki Matsui and Chien-Ming Wang for extended stretches. “He never used excuses and has always looked to solve the problem. He has handled our pitchers very well, he and (pitching coach) Dave Eiland have done a good job.”
I agree but I also think if Torre was here the Yankees wouldn’t be in this position. It’s a debate that will linger all winter long because the bottom line is this: Torre got the Yanks to the playoffs every year he was here. Girardi failed in his first try. Can’t blame Girardi for it, but it does show how effortless Torre made the job seem. Now that the Dodgers look to be playing in October while the Yanks sit at home, Torre’s laughable State Farm commerical about his new life in L.A. isn’t so funny. He looks like a genius for walking away from the Yankees. What happens if the Dodgers win the World Series? How will that affect Girardi’s job? Time will tell.
I think Girardi did what he could this season and I don’t hold him accountable. I wanted him as the manager so I have to accept the fate that came along with it. He showed me some fire this season and I liked it. The night he got thrown out and threw his hat to the ground and put on a Lou Pinella like tantrum I got all fired up. It was what I wanted to see, it’s what many fans wanted to see. For that night it worked as the Yankees made a 9th inning comeback. Since then, we’ve got a toned down Girardi, that I don’t like. Let the man do his job the way he sees fit. I think he’s trying too much to be a media’s manager. Let him scream, curse, shove. Whatever gets the job done. Maybe then, ALL of his players will respect him and then ALL of them will play with some pride. While I can’t say poor Joe, I can certainly say shame on those players who gave up on him and the team. The lesson we learned here….Joe Torre is a sure genius!
There are currently 12 responses to “Who’s To Blame? Part 2: Joe Girardi”
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How is it Girardi’s fault that Cano and Cabrera played poorly? Couldn’t that just be a coincidence? Especially since this is the second season in a row where Cabrera’s numbers went down.
Also Hughes broke a rib and Kennedy had about 150 innings in the minor leagues before he was thrust into the rotation. Usually pitchers get at least 300 innings and most get nearly 500 or more.
Well I think Cano and Cabrera lacked focus this year big time. They have the potential to be good players, but just looked as if they weren’t trying out there. Like I said Girardi did his best with the hand he was dealt but the Hughes injury couldve been avoided but something tells me the Yankees sent him out there knowing he was hurt thus injuring him more. Girardi says hes fine one day, then the next he has a broke rib and out for 3 months? Sounds fishy. They couldnt have Hughes hurt right after he was the main reason why they didnt want to trade for Johan. It wouldve been a public relations nightmare for the Cashman and crew.
Like it or not, fans of Torre swore that the Yankees would regret pushing him out the door and that he made an extremely difficult task look extraordinarily easy time and time again. Now is not the time to talk of coincidences and injury. Now is the time for the Pro-Torre camp to gloat and the Pro-Girardi camp to eat crow. Maybe when Girardi has a single postseason contest on his managerial resume, the debate can be reopened. Until then, the Yankees, Girardi, and his supporters look foolish.
The way the Yanks were run this year was a mess from top to bottom. Yes you couldve avoid injuries but focus should always be there. The lineup shouldnt have changed everyday for the first 4 months, but again at least Girardi tried something new. I just think his media personality needs to be more credible. His managerial style was ok, just needs a lil tweaking.
I’m a big Torre fan, but I don’t see where I have to pick a side. They manage the game differently. I’m not sure Torre could have done any better or worse.
I just don’t see where there is any evidence of any of the stuff Frank is claiming. Especially now that you’re saying the Yankees knew Hughes was hurt. That’s a statement which you cannot backup with any evidence whatsoever. Nobody would use a 21-year-old injured pitcher and if he knew he was hurt I’m sure he’d pull himself out. That’s a crazy baseless statement.
I also see no connection to Joe Torre and how Cabrera and Cano played this year or last. You say they lacked focus and I don’t see that. Especially when Girardi has said repeatedly that Cano is one of the hardest working players on the team and he has already committed to working with Long all winter.
I’ll tell you this much - the Yanks were happy to have an injury to explain away Hughes’ ineffectiveness. The new Steinbrenner regime seems to be all about excuse-making and have little in the way of accountability. I wouldn’t expect anything less from two spoiled brats.
As for Cano and Cabrera, when is there any evidence of that sort of thing? We know that both players loved Torre and viewed him as a father figure. How do they feel about Girardi? I don’t know. Even the writers in the locker room don’t have that sort of access into the minds of these guys. That’s why sports journalism deals in speculation as much as fact. Carlos Delgado clearly had issues with Willie Randolph. There were whispers and speculation to that effect while Willie was managing the team, but naturally everyone denied those reports until Willie was gone and the proof was i the pudding.
When players perform for one manager and not for another, it’s fair to speculate on the impact of the managerial change. Sometimes that speculation is baseless, but often times it’s not. Is there some measuring point where it’s okay to hold Girardi accountable for his players’ performances? After two seasons? Maybe three? Or perhaps we should remove both managers from the equation and let the team run itself. That way no one has to take blame for anything.
In Cabrera’s case though he fell off in 2007 from 2006 and falling further in 2008, while not many predicted it, follows a trend.
Also Cano had always been extremely inconsistent even under Torre. He had a terrible first half last season only to rebound with a monster second half. His season this year mirrored last season’s except his second half wasn’t as good. But it follows the same exact pattern.
So Cano just stinks then?
I know! Let’s overhaul his entire swing!
No, Cano has only been in the league for 3 years. He’s still growing as a player. The season where he hit .340 shows his potential just as this season shows he obviously still needs to improve. Most young players go through this, so why is it ok to pin this on Girardi?
This is a teamwide disappointment. Its not just on Girardi but he does have to take some of the blame. Cano just needs a good kick in his rear, Larry Bowa was the biggest influence on him, it’s starting to show now.
Alright I’m wrong. Girardi obviously feels there is a big enough problem with Cano that he has benched him. This is a problem because if he feels this way this is something that should have been done sooner.
I think we need a new hitting coach. Perhaps the instructor at Texas. For a mediocore ball club they kock the cover off the ball.