October 30, 2007
Girardi Is Yankees?? Choice for Manager
By TYLER KEPNER
The Yankees have settled on a choice for Joe Torre??s successor as the manager, and it is Joe Girardi, the former manager of the Florida Marlins who won three titles as a catcher for the Yankees in the 1990s.
Girardi was selected over Don Mattingly and Tony Peña, who were members of Torre??s last coaching staff with the Yankees.
??The Yankees have expressed interest in Joe becoming manager,? Girardi??s agent, Steve Mandel, said in a telephone interview Monday. ??We??ve decided to have discussions with them and we??re moving forward. No timetable has been set, but it??s a process we??re letting take place.?
In selecting Girardi, the Yankees set in motion Mattingly??s exit from the team. ??Don was extremely disappointed to learn today that he wasn??t the organization??s choice to fill the managerial vacancy,? Mattingly??s agent, Ray Schulte, said in a statement.
??Don will use this time to reflect on this experience while considering future family and career options,? according to the statement. ??In the meantime, he did inform the Yankee??s that given the circumstances he won??t accept a coaching position within the organization during 2008."
Mattingly had been groomed to one day replace Torre as manager. Mattingly said it was his goal to manage when he agreed ?? at the request of the principal owner, George Steinbrenner ?? to become the Yankees?? hitting coach in October 2003.
He served in that capacity for three years, including 2005, when Girardi was Torre??s bench coach, before taking over as the bench coach this season. This news comes after Alex Rodriguez??s agent announced the player??s decision Sunday night to opt out of his contract. Unless the Yankees change their stance of not chasing Rodriguez as a free agent, he will be the third significant departure, after Torre and Mattingly, since the Yankees?? were eliminated from the playoffs on Oct. 8.
Mandel said Girardi, 43, was returning to his Miami home with his family after serving as a commentator for Fox at the World Series in Denver. Girardi was a broadcaster for the YES Network this season after winning the Manager of the Year award with the Marlins in 2006.
Girardi was fired after one year in Florida over differences with Marlins management, but he remained a popular choice for other teams, interviewing for managerial vacancies with the Washington Nationals and the Baltimore Orioles.
Girardi played for 15 seasons with the Chicago Cubs, the Colorado Rockies, the Yankees and the St. Louis Cardinals, and his triple off Greg Maddux in Game 6 of the 1996 World Series propelled the Yankees to the victory that clinched Torre??s first championship.
