Joe Torre

Torre, Joe (Joseph Paul Torre, Jr.), 1940-, American baseball player and manager, b. Brooklyn, N.Y. Torre first played major league ball as a catcher for the Milwaukee Braves (1960-68), then moved (1969-75) to the St. Louis Cardinals. In 1971 he led the National League (NL) in batting and was named the National League's Most Valuable Player. Traded to the New York Mets in 1975, he retired from active play two year later and managed (1977-81) the team, but did not have a single winning season. He later skippered (1982-84) the Atlanta Braves, was a sportscaster in the later 1980s, and managed (1990-95) the St. Louis Cardinals. Hired (1995) by the New York Yankees, Torre led the team to a dozen consecutive American League (AL) playoffs (1996-2007) and four World Series titles (1996, 1998-2000), and became baseball's highest-paid manager. In 2001 and 2003, however, the Yankees lost the World Series and in other years failed to reach it. After 2007's disappointing season, Torre declined the Yankees' offer of a one-year contract and signed (2007) as the Los Angeles Dodgers' manager.

See his Chasing the Dream (1997) and The Yankee Years (2008).

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia Copyright © 2004.
Licensed from Columbia University Press

Joe Torre

Joseph Paul Torre (born July 18, 1940 in Brooklyn, New York) is the current manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers and a former Major League Baseball player. He played for the Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves, New York Mets and the St. Louis Cardinals. He later managed all three teams, as well as the New York Yankees.

He had a fairly unimpressive managerial record with the Mets, Braves, and Cardinals, but during Torre's tenure as manager of the Yankees, from 1996 to 2007, the Yankees reached the post season each year and won ten American League East Division titles, six American League pennants, and four World Series titles, in addition to compiling a .605 winning percentage with them.

With 2,151 wins (through September 28, 2008), he presently ranks 7th in all-time Major League Baseball all-time managerial wins.

Playing career

Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves (1960–68)

Joe Torre followed in his brother Frank's footsteps and joined the Milwaukee Braves in 1960. He quickly became a reliable player on a veteran Braves team that included Hank Aaron and Eddie Mathews. He was primarily a catcher, but also spent significant time as a first baseman. In 1965, Torre won a Gold Glove as a catcher. In a article for the St. Petersburg Independent that year, Beat Generation author Jack Kerouac called Torre, then with the Braves, "the best catcher since Roy Campanella". After moving to Atlanta, he hit .315 in 1966.

St. Louis Cardinals (1969–74)

Torre was traded to St. Louis in 1969 in exchange for Orlando Cepeda. He continued as a catcher for his first two seasons with the Cardinals, but became primarily a third baseman in 1971. That was the best year of his career; he hit .363 and drove in 137 runs en route to the NL MVP award.

New York Mets (1975–77)

Torre was traded to the Mets in 1975 for Ray Sadecki with Tommy Moore. He became a player-coach, then a player-manager before retiring.

Managing career

New York Mets (1977–81)

In May , Joe Frazier, who had been the team's manager since the beginning of , was fired, and Torre, who was playing third base for the Mets, was chosen as the replacement. Because he believed he could not do the job properly while still playing, he decided to retire at age 37, but did serve 18 days as a player-manager, becoming the second of three players in the 1970s to take on both roles (Frank Robinson, in the two previous seasons with the Cleveland Indians, and Don Kessinger, in with the Chicago White Sox, were the others). Torre closed out his 18-year playing career with a .297 batting average, 252 home runs, 1185 RBIs and 2,342 hits. Torre managed the Mets through the season, but was unable to post a winning season.

Atlanta Braves (1982-84)

He then took over as manager of the Braves, leading them to the NL Western Division title in his first season (the Braves, however, wound up being swept, 3-0 in the NLCS against the Cardinals), before slipping to second place in , and third place in .

Torre spent the - seasons as a television analyst for the California Angels. While working as a guest analyst for ESPN during the 1989 World Series, Torre was on hand for the Loma Prieta earthquake (October 17, ).

St. Louis Cardinals (1990–95)

In , Torre replaced the popular Whitey Herzog as Cardinals manager and posted a 351-354 record. Though the Cardinals were unable to reach the playoffs during Torre's tenure, they had winning records in each of the three full seasons he spent with the club (excluding the strike-shortened 1994 season). Despite a last place prediction from many commentators, the Cardinals finished in second place and won 84 games in 1991, Torre's first full season at the helm. His best record was 87-75 in 1993. Torre was fired in June as part of a rebuilding project while Anheuser-Busch prepared to sell the team.

New York Yankees (1996-2007)

Torre served as the Yankees skipper under the controversial owner George Steinbrenner, who was famous for frequently firing his team's managers. Torre lasted twelve full seasons, managing 1,942 regular season games (with a won-loss record of 1173–767). This was by far the longest tenure for a Yankees skipper in the Steinbrenner era. Torre's was the second-longest managerial tenure in the club's history: only Joe McCarthy lasted longer.

1996–2005

Torre got off to a rough start with the Yankees. The New York City press (and fans) thought his hiring was a colossal mistake and greeted him with headlines such as "Clueless Joe".

However, it was with the Yankees that he enjoyed the greatest success of his managerial career, leading them to the playoffs in each of his twelve seasons (1996-2007) with the club. In , he was named Manager of the Year. Torre, building on the Yankees' Wild Card berth in 1995, made his first-ever trip to the "Fall Classic", leading the Yankees to their first World Series since 1981. Once there, the Yankees defeated the Atlanta Braves. Steinbrenner tore up Torre's contract and gave him a new, more lucrative and longer contract as a reward.

After losing to the Cleveland Indians in the AL playoffs in , the team won three straight World Series titles from -2000, and additional American League pennants in and .

The season was Torre's most successful. Despite a slow start that included losing four of the first five games of the season, the Yankees set a then-American League record of 114 regular season wins, including David Wells's perfect game on May 17. During the playoffs, the Yankees easily bested the Texas Rangers, fought off the Cleveland Indians for the AL pennant, and swept the San Diego Padres in the World Series. Torre won Manager of the Year honors, and the team is now widely regarded as one of the greatest baseball teams, along with the Yankee teams of 1927, and , the - Oakland Athletics, and the 1975-1976 Cincinnati Reds. When ESPN launched its Who's #1? series on June 15, , the 1998 Yankees topped the network's list of Best Teams over the years 1979 to 2003.

In 2004, Torre suffered his greatest setback, marking the end of the Yankees' dominance. After building a 3-0 lead in the ALCS against the Boston Red Sox, his team would go on to suffer the greatest collapse in baseball history and lose the next four games and the ALCS. The Red Sox would go on to win the World Series, ending their 86-year-long drought. The Red Sox later added another championship in 2007, as they took the AL East Division for the first time after eight years of finishing second to the Yankees.

2006-2007

During the season, Torre had to face numerous obstacles. The largest hurdle was losing star players such as Gary Sheffield and Hideki Matsui to long-term injuries, a problem that was alleviated by trading for Bobby Abreu and bringing up Melky Cabrera, who after a terrible six games in 2005, made an impressive mark in 2006. Pitching was once again another major issue for the team. Randy Johnson, in his second season with the team, was still inconsistent in many of his starts. After helping the Yankees in the second half of the 2005 season, Shawn Chacón and Aaron Small were both dropped from the team, with Chacón being traded to the Pirates on July 31 and Small being sent back to the minors, and being designated for assignment but never going anywhere, early in the season. Despite the problems, the Yankees won another AL East title.

On June 7, 2007, Torre got his 2000th win and became the first major league manager to win 2000 games and have 2000 hits. On June 29, 2007 against the Oakland Athletics, Torre had his 2,010th managerial win, overtaking Leo Durocher for 9th place on the MLB all-time managerial wins list. He passed Casey Stengel on the Yankees all time managerial wins list on August 22, 2007, defeating the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim for up his 1,150th victory with the team.

On September 26, 2007, Torre led the Yankees to their 13th consecutive postseason appearance, clinching with a win at Tampa Bay.

On October 7, 2007, after the Yankees lost two games to the Cleveland Indians in the Division Series, George Steinbrenner said in an interview that Torre's contract would not be renewed if the Yankees did not defeat the Indians. The Yankees saved their season, and potentially Torre's job, for one day, as they beat the Indians 8-4 in Game 3 at Yankee Stadium. Following the Yankees' 6-4 loss the following night, earning them another first-round exit, Torre's fate remained uncertain. That night, as Torre went out to make what would be his last pitching change with the team, the fans in Yankee Stadium gave Torre a standing ovation and chanted his name.

On October 18, 2007, the New York Yankees offered Torre a one-year contract with a $5,000,000 base pay and $1,000,000 bonuses, to be paid for each of three benchmarks the team reached: winning the American League Divisional Series; winning the American League Championship Series; and winning the World Series. Also, if the Yankees made it to the World Series, Joe Torre would pick up an option for a new contract for the following year. The contract, despite the pay cut, would still have kept Torre as the highest paid manager in the game. Torre turned down the offer, ending his era with the Yankees. On October 19, 2007, Torre held a news conference to explain his decision. After first thanking owner George Steinbrenner, he said: "I just felt the contract offer and the terms of the contract were probably the thing I had the toughest time with."

Los Angeles Dodgers (2008–present)

On November 1, 2007, the Los Angeles Dodgers announced that Torre would be their manager beginning with the 2008 season, filling the void left when Grady Little resigned his post two days before. This marks the return of Torre to the National League, the only league he had played or managed in prior to becoming the Yankees skipper. According to ESPN, his contract is valued at $13 million over 3 years.

Torre brought two members of his 2007 Yankees coaching staff with him. Former Yankee great Don Mattingly, who had served as Torre's bench coach, was tabbed as the hitting coach, and third base coach Larry Bowa was brought in to fill the same position with the Dodgers. In January, 2008, Mattingly was moved to the role of special assignment coach for the 2008 season due to family concerns. He was replaced as hitting coach by Mike Easler. In addition, Torre brought in Bob Schaefer to be bench coach, and retained first base coach Mariano Duncan and pitching coach Rick Honeycutt from Little's staff. Ken Howell was promoted from Triple-A pitching coach to bullpen coach, completing his staff.

On March 31, 2008, Joe Torre made his managerial debut with the Dodgers in a 5-0 victory. Ironically, he would be managing several former Red Sox players, such as Manny Ramirez, Derek Lowe, and Nomar Garciaparra. On September 25, 2008, the Dodgers cliched the NL West title, giving Torre his 13th consecutive postseason appearance. October 4, 2008 saw Torre managing the Dodgers to a 3-1 victory over the Chicago Cubs in the National League Division Series, earning the Dodgers their first post season series victory since 1988.

Film and television appearances

He appeared as himself in the broadcast booth in the 1990 film Taking Care of Business, which showed a fictional World Series between the Angels and the Chicago Cubs. At the time, the Angels had never appeared in a World Series, and still would not until 2002, beating Torre's Yankees along the way; the Cubs had not, and still have not, appeared in a World Series since 1945.

Torre also was featured as the "Voice of the Yankees' Manager" in the 2006 animated feature Everyone's Hero. Torre's character manages a team that includes a fictional Babe Ruth.

He appeared in Sesame Street when he was brought by Baby Bear to help Telly catch a ball. Then, when he was walking back to a Yankees game, he threw the ball back to Telly, who caught it.

During the 2008 season, Torre appeared in TV ads for State Farm Insurance, poking fun at both himself and Hollywood stereotypes.

Personal

Torre has one son, Michael, by his first wife, Jackie, whom he married in 1963. He has two daughters, Lauren and Christine, by his second wife, Dani, whom he married in 1968. Both marriages ended in divorce. On August 23, 1987, he married Alice (Ali) Wolterman. They have a daughter, Andrea.

His older brother Frank was also a Major League Baseball player. He also had another brother, Rocco, who died in 1996.

Torre was treated for prostate cancer in 1999.

He is an avid thoroughbred horse racing enthusiast. He is a part owner of Sis City, winner of the 2005 Ashland Stakes at Keeneland Race Course. She had been the dominant 3-year-old filly that year until finishing fourth in the May 6 Kentucky Oaks. However, a few weeks later on June 26, Wild Desert, in which Torre is also a partner, won the $1 million Queen's Plate, the first leg of the Canadian Triple Crown. Wild Desert is also partially owned by Keith Jones, an NHL player.

On December 14, 2005, Torre carried the Olympic Torch in Florence, Italy, running it 405 meters, ending at the world famous Ponte Vecchio Bridge.

Joe Torre Foundation

Torre and his wife Ali created the Joe Torre Safe at Home Foundation, inspired by Torre's experiences growing up as a witness to domestic violence in his home in Brooklyn. The foundation operates approximately a dozen domestic violence resource centers called Margaret's Place, named after Torre's mother, in New York City and Westchester County, New York.

In October 2007, the Joe Torre Foundation partnered with Union City, New Jersey's Board of Education and the North Hudson Community Action Corporation (NHCAC) to create New Jersey's first Margaret's Place, at Union City's Jose Marti Middle School. Aspects of Union City's Margaret's Place will include a peer counseling program and an anti-violence campaign within the school, in order to encourage children to discuss family problems more freely, and training for teachers and counselors. The haven, which is housed in its own secure room at the school, was funded by a $325,000 grant from Verizon and is administered by health care professionals from North Hudson Community Action Corp.

Quotes

"I'd like to thank Félix Millán for making all of this possible." (Regarding setting the NL record for most double plays grounded into in a single game, 4, July 21, 1975. Millan batted ahead of Torre in the lineup, singling in all four of his at bats.)
(On his thinning hairstyle) "I call it the Watergate. I try to cover up as much as I can."

Managerial record

(updated thru October 9, 2008)

Team	Year	Regular Season				Postseason
Team	Year	Won	Lost	Win %	Finish	Won	Lost	Win %	Result
New York Mets	1977	49	68	.419	6th in NL East	-	-	-
	1978	66	96	.407	6th in NL East	-	-	-
	1979	63	99	.389	6th in NL East	-	-	-
	1980	67	95	.414	5th in NL East	-	-	-
	1981¹	17	34	.333	5th in NL East	-	-	-
	1981¹	24	28	.462	4th in NL East	-	-	-
NYM Total		286	420	.405		-	-	-
Atlanta Braves	1982	89	73	.549	1^st in NL West	0	3	.000	Lost NLCS
	1983	88	74	.543	2^nd in NL West	-	-	-
	1984	80	82	.494	3^rd in NL West	-	-	-
ATL Total		257	229	.529		0	3	.000	1 Post Season Appearance
St. Louis Cardinals	1990	24	34	.414	6^th in NL East	-	-	-
	1991	84	78	.519	2^nd in NL East	-	-	-
	1992	83	79	.512	3^rd in NL East	-	-	-
	1993	87	75	.537	3^rd in NL East	-	-	-
	1994	53	61	.465	3^rd in NL East	-	-	-
	1995	20	27	.426	4^th in NL East	-	-	-
STL Total		351	354	.498		-	-	-
New York Yankees	1996	92	70	.568	1^st in AL East	11	4	.733	Won World Series
	1997	96	66	.593	2^nd in AL East - Wildcard Team	2	3	.400	Lost ALDS
	1998	114	48	.704	1^st in AL East	11	2	.846	Won World Series
	1999	98	64	.605	1^st in AL East	11	1	.917	Won World Series
	2000	87	74	.540	1^st in AL East	11	5	.688	Won World Series
	2001	95	65	.594	1^st in AL East	10	7	.588	Lost World Series
	2002	103	58	.640	1^st in AL East	1	3	.250	Lost ALDS
	2003	101	61	.623	1^st in AL East	9	8	.529	Lost World Series
	2004	101	61	.623	1^st in AL East	6	5	.545	Lost ALCS
	2005	95	67	.586	1^st in AL East	2	3	.400	Lost ALDS
	2006	97	65	.599	1^st in AL East	1	3	.250	Lost ALDS
	2007	94	68	.580	2^nd in AL East - Wildcard Team	1	3	.250	Lost ALDS
NYY Total		1,173	767	.605		76	47	.618
Los Angeles Dodgers	2008	84	78	.519	1^st in NL West	3	0	1.000	Won NLDS [2008 postseason currently on-going]
	LAD Total		84	78	.519		3	1	.750
	AL Total		1,173	767	.605		76	47	.618	Won 4 World Series
	NL Total		978	1,081	.475	84-78 LA, 286-420 NYM, 257-229 Atl, 351-354 StL	3	4	.429
	Totals		2,151	1,848	.538	(2,151-1,848 incl. 84-78 as of Sep. 28, 2008)	79	51	.608	Won 4 World Series