Ask yourself this; if it's the players who are always to blame when a team loses, then why do we have managers and head coaches in the first place? According to the simplistic reasoning of some people, we can put a clipboard in the hands of a bright monkey and the results should be just about the same. All a team needs is a person to fill out the lineup. Someone has to decide who plays and who sits.  After all, we wouldn't want a bench guy in the game just because he could beat the snot out of the better players. Other than that the role of the manager is strictly symbolic, right? 

NO, NO, NO, NO, NO and if that isn't clear enough let me spell it out for you. N-O.

The manager is responsible for the mental health of his team. He leads by placing HIS stamp on his players. His mentality is the team's mentality. His laws are the team's laws. It doesn't matter if he "rules" through fear or love, but for God's sake rule he must. All things considered, Joe Torre must have done his job. It may have taken time to evolve to this point but the team is blemished by his bland image. They wear his mark like a scarlet letter, or more fittingly the cursed black spot. The word on the street is that Torre has about 2 weeks to turn things around or it's off to the "gallows" for "Lifeless Joe".

Every coaching situation is unique because every player on any team has different needs. One size does not fit all. It's the manager's job to determine when:

The slumping right fielder needs a kick in the pants

The all world third baseman a pat on the back

The team requires a few well-placed rants

I think that it's time you hit the road jack

What do you think old school manager Billy Martin (RIP) would have done to Bobby Abreu by now? Would he have stood for his timid, deer in the headlights play? Of course not. He would have lit into him and hopefully ignited a raging fire that would have inspired some on the field passion. Even if his play still suffered at least something would have been done. Joe Torre just watches and waits.

How about Lou Piniella and his notorious short fuse, especially for pitchers? Would he have yanked around starters and relievers due to inept play? Most probably, but Sweet Lou would have done so with style and purpose. He would have let some of those rag tag fill-ins take their beatings in the best interest of the team. Why burn out the whole staff when you can let one or two disposable players earn their "keep" for a day?  I could hear Piniella now: "You want to pitch like a dog? Well stay in there, take your lumps and make sure it doesn't happen again if you don't want this to happen again". Joe Torre just makes the same pitching staff mistakes over and over.

Would current Mets manager Willie Randolph have sat and watched idly as many fans booed Alex Rodriguez last season? Seeing him manage in Queens makes it clear that he would have come to the defense of his best player, unlikeTorre. Witnessing the guys at Shea play with reckless abandon, aggressiveness and most of all joy is making many a Yankees fan green with envy. How has Willie done it with a team that had more question marks in the rotation and line-up than did the Yankees in spring training? By being THE leader on the field, in the clubhouse and in the media...that's how.  By placing HIS stamp on his team. Torre just lets his "superstars" lead themselves. His stamp must be made of rubber now because whatever inspirational messages he is sending clearly just bounce away.

If the players are so in favor of Joe Torre as they claim, they had better start showing it immediately. Since Joe is clearly incapable of motivational tactics, it is up to them to stop being tin men and find the hearts to play for him. Otherwise, bring us the one named Girardi. He's been following the team all season long from the Yankees broadcast booth. You have to believe he has plenty of ideas regarding what the team needs and is licking his chops to try them out (whether he cares for Joe Torre or not). 

If the team continues to lay eggs, then Joe must go. It will be painfully clear that he is past the point of usefulness. If they cannot even play well to save his job, then what does he bring to the table besides nothing? At least if they can rally for him, then he still has something to offer. Otherwise, as always, it starts with the head and in more ways than one. Fail and the players will have a new leader trying to figure out what is going on inside their craniums. 

Time is ticking and it's not Torre's friend. We're at T-Minus two weeks and counting. He has 12 games in 14 days to right this ship. The Yanks are 10 games behind Boston in the loss column. Starting tonight they play the Red Sox (3), Angels (3), Blue Jays (3) and Red Sox again (3). Let's just call these games the dirty dozen. If the Yankees get manhandled by Boston, as well as play poorly against the Angels and Blue Jays, there will be a new manager leading the Bombers as they limp out of Fenway Park and head to Chicago on June 4th. The official watch begins.