Idiocy Led To Four Championships

It's time for some anecdotal fun! This little piece of eye-popping information comes directly from the mouth of Bob Watson, the former Yankees General Manager and the man responsible for hiring Joe Torre in the winter of 1995; a move that ushered in the "dynasty era" that spoiled all of us to death.

I happened to catch a WFAN interview with Mr. Watson, who was attending the All-Star FanFest in NYC. One of the questions posed to him was, "What made you hire Joe Torre?" A good question, especially considering the fact that Torre's managerial career to that point had not been very illustrious (the NY Daily News front page headline on the day of the signing was, "CLUELESS JOE").

So, was it Torre's calm, professional presence that made Watson hire him? His baseball acumen? His ability to "diffuse controversy," or his penchant for green tea?

"He was my idol," responded Bob Watson, then-GM of the richest franchise in all of sport.

He hired Joe Torre because he "idolized" him as a player.

Holy shit.

Does anyone else find this unnerving? Don't you think that there should be a few more...I don't know...qualifications involved in picking your manager?! Until now I have romanticized the early-to-mid-90's period in Yankees' administrative history. I have always imagined Gene Michael, Showalter, and Watson (not Steinbrenner...not him) concocting a masterful plan for world domination, then putting that plan in motion by destroying one of its creators (Buck) and hiring Torre.

Now I realize, had the cards fallen a little differently, a guy like Joe Pepitone could have been the successor to Buck Showalter. No wonder everything is so difficult for this team now. We're finally paying back the karma loan.
_