Joe Torre Sends The Right Message With Game One Lineup

Photo by Newsday.com
Here is Joe Torre's starting lineup for game 1 of the 2006 playoffs:

1. Johnny Damon, CF
2. Derek Jeter, SS
3. Bobby Abreu, RF
4. Gary Sheffield, 1B
5. Jason Giambi, DH
6. Alex Rodriguez, 3B
7. Hideki Matsui, LF
8. Jorge Posada, C
9. Robinson Cano, 2B

Let's give credit to Joe Torre for finally doing the right thing and getting A-Rod out of the 3, 4, 5 spots. If Joe had a little more courage, he would put Alex ninth and shift Hideki, Jorge Posada, and Cano up one slot each. But this would be pushing things with A-Rod's pride.

Even as it stands, A-Rod has got to be hurt. He has never batted lower than 5th in a regular season or playoff lineup.

The bottom line is this: with the Yankees on the brink of the best chance to win a World Series Championship that they have had in several years, do you think that Yankees fans would forgive Torre for lamely allowing A-Rod to get the most RBI opportunities?

Who would you rather see at the plate in an RBI situation: Gary Sheffield, who has only played a handful of games this season, or A-Rod?

This speaks volumes about Joe Torre's faith in A-Rod.

Who knows? Maybe this will take pressure off A-Rod and allow him to perform closer to his abilities.

Joshua
InsideTheYankees.com

P.S. The photo of Hideki and Zimmer was taken on the day of Hideki's return to the field. It has no real relevance to this post. I just love it and have wanted to use it for a long time now. Two good men with respect and affection for one another. You can feel it.