Tradition

Joe Torre was hired Thursday to manage the Los Angeles Dodgers, taking the job two weeks after walking away from the New York Yankees.
Torre's contract is reportedly for three years and slightly more than $13 million. Torre moves from one storied franchise to another, taking over a team that finished fourth in the NL West this season and hasn't won the World Series since 1988.


Ok that is that now for a rant. I do not care about the Dodgers so much, but they are from LA and growing up watching them with my father (His favorite team, but not the one whom drafter him. The Angels) I did grow up with the tradition that was Dodger Blue. I suffered through years with managers like Terry Collins, Buck Rodgers, Marcel Lachemann, Doug Rader, Cookie Rojas and Moose Stubing, and Gene Mauch all running the Angels while Tommy Lasorda ruled the Dodgers. I hoped for that kind of tradition. The Dodgers had the best players of the day. They had some new innovation, Nomo, Fernando, A cripple whom pitch hit to win a playoff game. They signed players but the mostly developed players from within. Orel Hershiser, Steve Sax, Eric Karros, Mike Piazza, Fernando Valenzuela, Ron Cey, Don Sutton 5 World Championships, 9 Pennants, and 15 Playoff Appearances since they have been in LA. And only two of those playoff appearances since Tommy left town for Dodger retirement.


Now they sign the same manager whom only led one team to the playoffs before joining the Yankees. That team 1982 NL West Atlanta Braves. He started managing in 1977 with the Mets. Not much Dodger tradition. The Dodgers left tradition behind the day the Angles hired an entire staff of ex-Dodgers starting with Mike Scioscia.


It seems to me in recent years the team LA needs to follow, the one whose owner is not in debt, has money and the want to build what the Dodgers have lost, is the Angels and Moreno. Torre is a nice shinny Band-Aid that you get at the pediatricians office with cartoon characters. It looks cool but you still have the open wound underneath and you still have a band-aid on. Torre is not tradition except to say that he is starting to become one. One in which the Dodgers don’t win and have to cover up their mistakes with fancy cartoon band-aids.