From the time the Dodgers opened spring training, Joe Torre said he knew his move to Los Angeles would require him to work more than he had in the past -- and it wasn't only because of the lessons he would have to impart to a club much younger than the one he led in New York.
He was moving back to the National League, where he spent his first 15 seasons as a manager.
Torre has often described his first season with the Dodgers as frustrating at times, rewarding at others. The $13-million manager recently added another description: stimulating.
In his 12 seasons with the Yankees, Torre built his reputation on his ability to manage the egos on baseball's most expensive team. Here, largely because there is no designated hitter, Torre is shouldering an increased workload.
"It's more challenging," Torre said.
And sometimes sickening. Like on Aug. 13, when the Dodgers were at home against the Philadelphia Phillies and the score was tied, 6-6, heading into the ninth. Shortstop Angel Berroa and catcher Danny Ardoin were the only remaining bench players.
Torre called Jonathan Broxton out of the bullpen and took out the player who had been the penultimate hitter in the previous inning.
No big deal, right? Not quite.
The hitter he replaced was Manny Ramirez.
"That was the toughest decision of the year for me right there," Torre said.
The move worked out, as Broxton put up a zero and Nomar Garciaparra ended the game in the bottom of the ninth with a walk-off home run. But Torre was aware that the switch could have backfired if the game had gone into extra innings.
"In this league, there are more of those choices," he said. "In the American League, you take a pitcher out when you think he's tired."
Torre had a sub-.500 record as a manager until he went to the Yankees, but third base coach Larry Bowa went so far as to call him "way underrated." Also Torre's top lieutenant in New York, Bowa was considered one of the game's top strategists when he managed in Philadelphia and San Diego.
"He's knowledgeable about what he's doing," said Bowa, who is among the coaches Torre frequently consults during games. "Sometimes that gets lost when you're with a team like the Yankees because he had seven, eight guys who were studs. You don't pinch-hit with them. In the American League, you could go two weeks without using a bench player. In the National League, you couldn't go two days."
