Sports Wire
Torre finds fire still burnina
By Ronald Blum
The Associated Press
BOSTON— For months, Joe
Torre didn’t know if he cared
enough to keep managing.
Cancer will do that.
Then, last month in Toronto’s
SkyDome, with the Yankees’ divi
sion lead dwindling, he learned
something about himself.
“All of a sudden, my stomach
started hurting and I realized the
passion was there,” he said early
Tuesday after leading New York
past Boston and into the World
Series for the third time in his
four seasons.
He is only the fifth Yankees’
manager to win three pennants,
joining Casey Stengel (10), Joe
McCarthy (eight), Miller Huggins
(six) and Ralph Houk (three).
And now the 59-year-old New
Yorker will face a World Series
opponent that fired him, Atlanta
or New York Mets.
But for a while, he wasn’t sure
he belonged.
He was diagnosed with cancer
during spring training and left the
team March 10. He had surgery
eight days later and didn’t rejoin
the Yankees until May 18.
“When that whole thing started
with the prostate cancer in spring
training, you really didn’t care
about baseball,” he said under the
Fenway Park stands, trying to put
his team’s season and his life in
perspective.
“You go through that — and
when you’re going through your
recovery, you’re not sure if you’re
going to care when you get back.
Then, once I got back, it was sort
of like, let me study myself.”
When Torre rejoined the team,
he kind of drifted along, as his
team did for much of the 1999 sea
son.
“I know a lot of my players had
said I was a little bit different be
cause I sort of had this philosophy
or perspective that it’s only a
game of baseball,” Torre said.
New York opened a comfort
able lead and wasn’t really
pressed until the Red Sox swept a
three-game series at Yankee Stadi
um from Sept. 10-12. David Wells
beat them the next night, and the
Yankees were losing 5-1 — know
ing Boston was ahead and could
close to 2 1/2 games — before
Bemie Williams and Paul O’Neill
hit grand slams.
“That,” Torre said, “probably
was an emotional turnaround for
me and I realized how important
this was forme.”
In 1996, his brother, Frank, had
a heart transplant. The story of the
Torres riveted New York, with Joe
finally making the World Series
for the first time since joining the
major leagues in 1960.
Last year, Torre felt tremendous
pressure to win the Series after
the team went 114-48 during the
regular season, setting an AL
record for wins.
But since that night in Toronto,
Torre has felt he belonged.
“In the postseason, it’s identi
cal to last year, maybe even a lit
tle more so,” he said. “I’m all the
way back as far as the emotion of
what I’m doing. But it’s been a
wild year.”
Even George Steinbrenner, who
spent the 1970s and ’80s changing
managers as often as some teams
changed their starting rotations,
praises Torre. Of course, it’s easy
for The Boss. Torre wins.
“When your manager comes
through like that, he inspires
them,” Steinbrenner said early
Tuesday. “He’s definitely been an
inspiration.”
Players agree. Torre has a knack
to say exactly the right thing, all
the time.
“He knows how to handle
every player individually,” Derek
Jeter said. “But he also knows
how to handle people collective
ly.”
Torre knew the year would be
difficult before he went to Florida
in February, but he was thinking
only about the baseball part. New
York has spent the better part of
the last year being measured
against the 1998 Yankees, a con
test they can’t win.
“I tried to warn the club in
spring training that we cannot
compete against ourselves be
cause that’s a once-in-a-lifetime
type thing,” he said.
Lion defense braces for miahtv Brees
By David Kinney
The Associated Press
STATE COLLEGE, Pa.—
Maybe Penn State has Purdue’s
Drew Brees all figured out: Give
him his astronomical passing
stats — just don’t let his receivers
dash for the end zone after the
, catch.
The strategy worked for the Nit
tany Lions in 1998, when they
didn’t allow Brees to complete a
pass for more than 19 yards on
the way to a 31-13 victory.
It worked for Michigan and
Ohio State this month. And it
could work again Saturday when
the No. 2 Lions (7-0, 3-0 Big Ten)
visit the No. 16 Boilermakers.
“He did complete a lot of pass
es and he did have a lot of yards,
but they were a lot of passes that
didn’t really contribute to the
game. That’s the big key: Shutting
down the big play,” said line
backer Mac Morrison, who sus
tained a concussion during Satur
day’s victory over Ohio State
“Last year we also had a great
pass rush, and I think we’re going
to have to do that again,” he said.
Brees finished 39-of-58 for 361
yards in that defeat at Penn State,
but threw an interception, was
The Rec
WITH
sacked six times and only threw
one touchdown.
Same story this month against
the Wolverines and the Buckeyes:
Brees threw one ID in two games.
Purdue lost both.
But the junior is coming off yet
another spectacular showing,
completing 40 passes for 506
yards and five TDs in the Boiler
makers’ (5-2, 2-2 Big Ten) 52-28
upset of No. 11 Michigan State
Saturday.
And Penn State’s Joe Patemo
thinks this is a different Purdue
offense from the one he saw last
year.
If judge accepts deal,
Warrick could play
By Brent Kallestad
The Associated Press
TALLAHASSEE, Fla.—Florida
State’s Peter Warrick could play
Saturday against Clemson in a
deal that would send him to jail
for a month early next year, the
star receiver’s lawyer said Tues
day.
Warrick was considered the
leading candidate for the Heisman
Trophy when he was suspended
Oct. 7 following his arrest on a
felony grand theft charge. He has
missed the top-ranked Florida
States last two games.
That could change Wednesday
if Circuit Court Judge John Crusoe
accepts a plea agreement reached
by Warrick lawyer John Kenny
and the Leon County state attor
ney to reduce the charge to petty
theft—a misdemeanor.
Florida State athletic director
Dave Hart Jr. wouldn’t comment
Tuesday, preferring to wait until
Crusoe acts on the agreement.
Warrick and former teammate
Laveranues Coles were charged
with buying more than $400 of de
signer clothes Sept. 29 for $21.40
from a store clerk, who is also
charged. A security camera
recorded the transaction.
The agreement would require
Warrick spend 30 days in jail, do
nate to charity clothing he ac
quired in three trips to a Dillard’s
store, pay $295 in court costs, stay
away from the department store
( { They worked very hard
to look at Mr. Warrick not as
a football player.
John Kenny
Warrick lawyer J J
and serve a year’s probation.
“They wanted the 30 days to of
fer a misdemeanor,” Kenny said
Tuesday. “That’s pretty standard
when looking at felony cases.
They worked very hard to look at
Mr. Warrick not as a football play
er.”
Warrick could have avoided jail
time, but not if he wanted to have
a shot at playing again this season.
“He looked at the options of go
ing to trial to prove it was a petty
theft, but those are not viable op
tions when Peter wants to make
himself available to the university
as quickly as possible,” Kenny
said.
Warrick caught 36 passes for
508 yards and four touchdowns in
Florida State’s first five games. He
also threw a touchdown pass, ran
back a punt for another and ran
from scrimmage for a TD.
Sports brief
USC will open drive to build
basketball arena
LOS ANGELES— The Univer
sity of Southern California plans
to build a new arena across the
street from campus.
The Trojans’ basketball teams
have played their home games at
the Los Angeles Sports Arena
since the facility was built 40
years ago.
The proposed arena, which
would be just a few blocks from
the new Staples Center, would
have a 12,000-seat capacity and
cost up to $75 million.
Staples Center, new home of
the Los Angeles Lakers and Clip
pers of the NBA and the NHL’s
Los Angeles Kings, cost $375
million.
There is no timetable set for
completion of USC’s new arena,
since fund-raising will be neces
sary to pay for it.
A Thursday news conference
with USC president Steven Sam
ple has been called to formally
announce the plans.
The school’s volleyball teams
would also use the facility.
The Associated Press
007561
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