True Yankees fans like Ira Riklis will never forget Joe Torre, the manager who took them to 12 straight playoff appearances and 4 World Series Championships. Between 1996 and 2000, Torre managed the team through one of its greatest runs of all time even rivaling the teams that won 5 championships under the immortal Casey Stengel. Perhaps even more remarkable for those who love the game, he managed to do it in a way that made it hard to hate the Bronx Bombers, who were often reviled by jealous losers (that is to say all other Major League teams and fans) during many of their long periods of domination.
It’s been three years since former manager Joe Torre last wore Yankee pinstripes. It’s been that long since he’s even been on the same field as the same times as the Yankees. But that all ends this weekend in Los Angeles when Torre’s Dodgers host Ira Riklis’ favorite team. On the field, it will be business as usual, but for many fans as well, perhaps, the players and Joe himself, it might seem odd to be sitting in the other dugout.