C'mon... as a Yankee fan, you MUST have some opinion on this book and Torre.
More for ya
Torre's co-author tries to clear air on radio
In the wake of the controversy over his soon-to-be released book, "The Yankee Years," Tom Verducci took to the airwaves yesterday to clarify misconceptions about his collaboration with Joe Torre.
Verducci, a Sports Illustrated writer who co-authored the book with the former Yankees manager, appeared on "The Dan Patrick Show" and WFAN's "Mike'd Up" with Mike Francesa after a story in Sunday's New York Post portrayed Torre as bitter toward Yankees brass and linked him to scathing remarks about Alex Rodriguez and A-Rod's relationship with captain Derek Jeter.
Among the more scintillating revelations, as reported by the Post, were that Rodriguez was called "A-Fraud" by teammates and had a "Single White Female"-like obsession with Jeter.
"It's funny that in the original story that came out in the New York Post, they supposedly had the book, [but] there's not a single citation of the book," Verducci told Patrick, adding that those remarks were taken out of context and inaccurately attributed to Torre.
"Joe Torre certainly wasn't name-calling, certainly didn't use the phrase 'A-Fraud' or 'Single White Female.' That's why it's important to know it is a third-person narrative."
Verducci, a former Newsday sportswriter, said the Post story contained factual errors regarding his book. "Well, they had Torre calling players prima donnas," he said. "He never does that. C'mon."
Verducci said Torre never trashes Rodriguez in the book but did say Torre saw him as someone with more "individual-driven motivation" that was different from players he had managed on four Yankees championship teams.
"No, he doesn't rip him, but he talks about how Alex came with a very different perspective, that Alex liked the attention, he craved the attention," Verducci said.
He did say, however, that while doing reporting for the book, he found that Rodriguez often was the subject of inside jokes in the clubhouse.
"Within the window of his first year in New York ... even his close friends were saying Alex tried too hard to fit into New York, to be all things to all people instead of just being himself," Verducci told Francesa about the "A-Fraud" and "Single White Female" references. "The fact of the matter is the reference is to an inside joke among teammates during his first year in New York when he tried too hard to fit in."
That shouldn't surprise anyone who has followed Rodriguez's five seasons with the Yankees, Verducci said.
"Is it shocking that Alex Rodriguez has had a tough time fitting into the Yankees' clubhouse? I don't think so. Is it shocking that Alex and Derek Jeter have issues that have affected people in that clubhouse?" Verducci asked. "I don't think that's shocking."
Verducci and Torre also co-wrote "Chasing The Dream: My Lifelong Journey to the World Series," published in 1997, the year after the Yankees won their first championship since 1978.
