The End of an Era?

The Yanks completed another collapse, and it was the same old story again. Poor pitching and an offense that never seems to show up in October. Anyone blaming Alex Rodriguez is just stuck in 2006, this was basically a team wide failure. With the exception of Johnny Damon, who hit two homers, and Mariano Rivera who pitched 4 2/3 innings of scoreless relief, and Phil Hughes who prolonged the Yankee season by one night, no one else bothered to show up.

At this point everyone knows about The Boss' ultimatum. So is Joe Torre really done? And if Torre is let go, what happens to Rivera, Posada and Andy Pettitte? All three are Torre disciples and with the exception of their cup of coffee with the Yankees in 1995 and Pettitte's Houston Hiatus, they have known no other manager in the Major Leagues.

So let's say, worst case scenario (or best case, depending upon who you talk to), Torre is let go and Rivera, Posada and Pettitte leave. This would be, in effect, the final dismantling of the most recent pro sports dynasty.

For the first time during the course of this Yankee run, finality is setting in. Sure after 2001 there were massive changes: Paul O'Neill and Scott Brosius retired, Tino Martinez was traded, Chuck Knoblauch was let go. But the core of homegrown Yankees like Derek Jeter, Bernie Williams, Posada, Mariano and Pettitte remained. And of course, Torre remained at the helm.

But now, should Torre be replaced, should three of the remaining four homegrown Yankees of the dynasty years leave, it would finally be the true end of an era. An era that saw the Yankees win four World Series Championships, appear in another two, win nine straight division titles between 1998 and 2006, and make the postseason 13 consecutive times (12 under Torre).

It would be a scenario that, to this fan, would be heartbreaking. Torre deserved better than to have his job threatened while his team faced elimination. He deserved better especially after helping get this team into the playoffs after a 21-29 start. Mariano Rivera deserves better than to be left wondering where his future lies. Jorge Posada deserves better, he'll always be more of a vocal leader than Jeter ever could hope to be. For Pettitte, his future lies in his hands as he owns a player option for 2008, but surely his decision will be heavily influenced by who the manager of this team is next season.

Sure, one day you have to let go of the past. But this Yankee team is not fully ready for a future without these four men. Finally a flood of young Yankees have taken to the roster: Cano, Cabrera, Hughes, Joba, Kennedy, but the leadership and experience that the last great generation of homegrown Yankees can offer to these young players is invaluable.

Not to mention, who replaces them if they leave anyway? Rivera showed cracks in his armor, but he is still better than 95% of the league. Posada had the best regular season of his career, and we all know that there are no young catchers anywhere in sight down in the minors. Pettitte proved he could still get it done in the American League and gave the Yankees their only solid outing in the playoffs.

Maybe I'm just not ready to let go yet, maybe it's because these are the players that I'll speak so fondly of when I talk my grandkids one day about baseball. Maybe because rooting for them next season when I'll be 22 is a way to hold onto being 15 years old when I was rooting for those same players, but I believe these four guys need to be on this team next year.

Oh, and I haven't even mentioned Alex Rodriguez yet.

End of rambling for now.