Major League Baseball

DEAR DOUG MELVIN: TORRE NO ORDINARY JOE

Published Oct. 12, 2010 10:15 p.m. ET

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The Brewers' GM should gauge the out-of-work manager's interest.

First impressions, second thoughts and the third degree:

If he hasn't already, Brewers general manager Doug Melvin should put in a call to Joe Torre and see if he'd be interested in becoming the next manager in Milwaukee.

Unless Torre responds with an emphatic no, or his asking price is off the charts, Melvin should pursue him as hard as the most coveted free agent on the market.

Hiring Torre would not only make for a great story - he began his playing career in Milwaukee in the early 1960s and was a Gold Glove-winning catcher on Braves teams that included cherished Hall of Famers Hank Aaron and Eddie Mathews - it would effectively woo a fan base that needs to be wooed after consecutive seasons of underachievement at Miller Park.

Yes, Torre is 70.

Yes, it's possible Torre isn't a small-market, Midwestern kind of guy after managerial stints in New York with the Yankees and Los Angeles with the Dodgers.

But he's also won four World Series rings, 2,326 games as a big league manager - fifth-most in history - and is renowned for his calm demeanor and respected dugout presence.

After dumping Ken Macha on Sunday, Melvin has fired as many Brewers managers as there have been winning seasons on his watch in Milwaukee since 2002 (two).

Ned Yost was let go in part because he was too close to the players. Macha had back-to-back losing seasons because the pitching stunk, but also because he was too detached from the players.

Nothing against Bob Melvin, the oft-rumored candidate to replace Macha, but Torre has a Cooperstown track record in part because of his ability to walk down the middle of that road.

Hiring Torre would not only create an immediate PR splash in Milwaukee, where attendance dropped under 3 million for the first time since 2007, it might be a factor in the mind of free agent pitchers who are considering the Brewers.

Melvin had a terrible 2010 and he would be the first to admit that. Almost every one of his personnel decisions went kerflooey, setting the stage for a 77-85 record and third-place finish in the National League Central.

Melvin has a long to-do list this offseason - pitching, first baseman Prince Fielder, pitching, second baseman Rickie Weeks, pitching - but he could set a resounding tone by hiring Torre.

WHEN MONEY (APPARENTLY) MEANS NOTHING: When Dallas Cowboys rookie Dez Bryant declined to carry a veteran's shoulder pads after a preseason practice - an unwritten rite of passage in the NFL - the vet vowed revenge.

Wide receiver Roy Williams promptly got 22 to 25 teammates together for dinner and stuck Bryant with a $55,000 tab.

It wasn't the act itself that bothered me, even though that's more than a year's salary. It was the underlying arrogance and ignorance.

Williams was arrogant when he publicly bragged about the meal. "I ain't ate in two days," he said.

Everyone involved was grossly ignorant to the fact that we're in a recession, that groceries are a luxury for many, that unemployment is rampant and that so many of those affected are fans.

SOME SURVEYS ARE DUMB: So, according to a sports poll compiled by Seton Hall, 59 percent of women surveyed believe women shouldn't be allowed access to NFL locker rooms, Major League clubhouses and other like locations. At the same time, 34 percent of respondents believe all reporters should be banned from those places.

What most non-journalists - and, surprisingly, some reporters - don't realize is that hard work brings its best rewards in the locker room compared to news conferences.

A big part of a sports writer's job is to cultivate as many trusting relationships with players as possible. The hope is they will offer insights to you that they absolutely wouldn't supply in a group setting.

Better information comes to light, better stories are written, in part because of the open locker room policy. It doesn't matter the sport. It doesn't matter if the reporter is a man or a woman.

Contact Andy Baggot at abaggot@madison.com or 608-252-6175.

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