The Yankee Years Part 28

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Jorge Posada emerged as an offensive force at catcher and was the most vocal and fiery force in the clubhouse.

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The greatest closer in baseball history and the essential element in the Yankees' dominance: Mariano Rivera.

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The unquestioned star of the Yankees was shortstop Derek Jeter, who combined Hall of Fame-level skills with a team-first mind-set, a ferocious compet.i.tive drive, a willingness to play hurt, matinee-idol looks, and an apt.i.tude for great plays in key situations. The bond between Torre and Jeter was unshakable.

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Torre handled the notoriously brutal New York media with aplomb and honesty.

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Early on, Torre stood up to owner George Steinbrenner, earning his respect. Steinbrenner was unpredictable and volatile, but the emotional owner gave Torre s.p.a.ce as long as the Yankees kept winning champions.h.i.+ps.

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Torre often was criticized for his management of the pitching staff, mostly involving players who had not earned his trust. But for years, the Yankees were successful because the team rarely lost when leading after six innings.

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Steinbrenner and the front office people in Tampa often tried to get to Torre by attacking his coaches, especially pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre and bench coach Don Zimmer. Zimmer would leave with some bitterness after 2003.

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The Yankees' storied past was both an inspiration and a burden to the team and to Torre. Yogi Berra had stayed away from the Stadium for many years after a feud with Steinbrenner, but returned often after a reconciliation, to the delight of the fans.

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Reggie Jackson was a special advisor to the team. He tried to help Alex Rodriguez with the pressures of being a superstar in New York.

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Torre considered General Manager Brian Cashman a good friend, but by the end of his time in the Bronx they had grown apart.

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The incredible 1998 season, in which the Yankees won 114 games in the regular season, was highlighted by David Wells's perfect game on May 17, 1998.

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Scott Brosius was the MVP of the 1998 World Series, in which the Yankees swept the Padres.

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Another t.i.tle season in 1999, another perfect game, this time by veteran righthander David Cone.

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1999 was the first season Roger Clemens pitched for the Yankees. He won two World Series t.i.tles and a Cy Young Award in 2001 but later allegations about steroid use would cloud his legacy with the team.

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2000 was the last champions.h.i.+p year for Torre's Yankees, as they beat the Mets in the "Subway Series." A key play in the epic, 12-inning Game 1 was Derek Jeter's off-balance laser relay throw to Jorge Posada, which nailed Timo Perez at the plate and snuffed a Met rally.

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Jeter, who was the MVP of the 2000 Series, celebrates the Yankees' third straight t.i.tle with Torre.

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The 2001 World Series was one of the best ever played, heightened by the emotional charge of the September 11th attacks.

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Scott Brosius's home run in the bottom of the 9th in Game 5 tied the score, and the Yankees went on to win-a night after Derek Jeter had won the game in the bottom of the 10th with a walk-off home run. But the Yankees lost in the 7th game on a very rare blown save by Mariano Rivera.

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Torre did not fully endorse the Yankees' signing of Jason Giambi, a prodigious. .h.i.tter with limited defensive skills. He put his objections in writing to Steinbrenner, so he couldn't be accused later of asking for Giambi if the acquisition did not work out.

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Chuck k.n.o.blauch was an All-Star second baseman and a key member of the Yankees' t.i.tle teams from 1998-2000, but he developed a mysterious inability to throw to first base, an affliction that hastened his decline.

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2003 featured a season-long battle with the Red Sox, peppered by a brawl during Game 3 of the ALC series that started when Pedro Martinez beaned role player Karim Garcia. In the dugout Martinez pointed to his head and then at Jorge Posada, infuriating Posada and the Yankees. In the melee, Martinez threw Don Zimmer to the ground. The bad feelings persisted, and when the Yankees won the pennant in one of the greatest Game 7's ever, the vindication was sweet. It was the last moment of grandeur for Torre's Yankees.

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Andy Pett.i.te and Roger Clemens were the best of friends. When the Yankees let Pett.i.te leave after the 2003 season, many Yankee fans felt it was a terrible mistake. Clemens, who had retired with some fanfare, joined Pett.i.te with the Astros and took them to their first World Series in 2005. Later, when allegations that Clemens was a steroid user came out, Pett.i.te tearfully revealed that he had once used human growth hormone to recover from an injury. Pett.i.te returned to the Yankees in 2007 and pitched effectively.

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The high-priced free agent pitcher Kevin Brown, whom Cashman brought in to anchor the rotation when Pett.i.te and Clemens left the team. Thiry-nine years old at the time the Yankees acquired him, Brown would distinguish himself by breaking his hand by punching a wall and spending several weeks on the disabled list, retreating to the clubhouse in the middle of a start and telling Torre he wanted to quit, and getting sh.e.l.lacked for 2 runs in the first inning of Game 7 of the 2004 American League Champions.h.i.+p against the Red Sox.

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The trade for Alex Rodriguez signalled a deep change in the culture of the Yankees. A-Rod was one of the greatest players in the history of the game, but his obsession with his own statistics, his strained relations.h.i.+p with Derek Jeter, his failure to perform in the clutch, and his penchant for creating media circuses did not endear him to his teammates, or the Yankee fans. Torre appreciated having someone of A-Rod's talents on the team (he did win two MVP Awards under Torre), but dealing with his complicated psyche and the clubhouse distractions he created became wearying.

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The Yankees playoff run in 2007 ended in a cloud of bugs on a warm September night in Cleveland. Torre says the biggest mistake he ever made as Yankee manager was not pulling his team from the field.

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Through it all, it was a job Torre loved. When the Yankees, no longer controlled by an ailing Steinbrenner, forced him out, an era ended.