Sherman: Girardi Shouldn't Try To Be The Next Joe

From Joel Sherman (hat tip to Steve Lombardi):

To be around Joe Torre again is a reminder of his impressive blend of self-confidence, serenity and stature.

Torre exudes a comfort in his own skin and, thus, brings a comfort to those who enter his sphere. He stands so starkly different from his Yankees New York Yankees successor, Joe Girardi, the uptight champion of the universe.

It is why comparisons between the two must cease. It is just unfair to Girardi to wonder why he can't be more similar to Torre, the Dodgers skipper. It is like asking a snake to be a dove.

I agree. To compare the two is very unfair to Girardi. Regardless of what some fans think, Joe Torre ranks up there with the top three or four Yankee managers of all-time, and it's unfair to put those kind of expectations on Girardi.

Sherman goes on to describe how Girardi should follow NY Giants head coach Tom Coughlin's blueprint for success, and adjust the way he manages in the same way Coughlin changed the way he coached.

Remember where Coughlin was after the 2006-07 season? He had a disenchanted locker room and a media corps painting a negative picture of his personality. Coughlin's bosses demanded he address these issues.

And he did, and the Giants went on to win the Super Bowl.

Now it's the Yanks who have atmospheric and fraternal issues, and Girardi's bosses have quietly asked him to make adjustments. They recognize his lack of a human touch not only looks terrible following Torre, but has brought about a tension that has begun to suffocate the team. Again, Girardi can't be Torre. He is not going to learn in one offseason how to project wise grandfather rather than marine drill instructor.

Nevertheless, if I ran the Yanks I would advise Girardi to meet individually with the nine beat reporters who travel regularly with the team and take seriously the complaint that his initial instinct to deceive hurts not only his relationship with the media, but also with a) players who find themselves in informational conflict with their manager; and b) the fans, who get less than forthright insights from the manager. And, by the way, this is not just on the subject of injuries, though Girardi and the Yankees think it is.

Girardi then should form a leadership council and request full honesty from the Jeters, A-Rods and Riveras. Because he finished the year saying he had good relationships with the media and his players, and neither was true. Maybe Girardi is too good at deceiving himself, as well.

His players want Girardi, among other items, to stop walking through the clubhouse without making eye contact, to stop closing his office door so frequently and to stop shutting out coaches they respect. In other words, they want him to show he cares about more than Xs and Os.

This isn't the first person who has said these kinds of things about Girardi since the season ended. First it was Jon Heyman, and Kim Jones on WFAN, then Peter Abraham had similar things to say, and now it's Joel Sherman. There were also some stories throughout the year that hinted at some of these complaints.

If what they're all saying is true then it might be a good idea for Girardi to follow some of the advice in this article. Some of it may seem silly at first glance, but as Sherman points out, it has worked in this town before with a coach who didn't seem to be handling his job properly.