One prominent baseball fan has a hard time believing George Steinbrenner is really considering firing Joe Torre.
“Joe Torre is one of the great managers, and he could manage anything,” Mayor Michael Bloomberg said yesterday. “This is a quality guy who knows how to attract people and get them to work together. That’s what management is all about.”
Torre remained manager for another day – but maybe not for much longer after the Yankees lost 6-4 to the Indians in Game 4 of the AL Division Series last night. It was their third straight defeat in an ALDS.
Saturday night, Steinbrenner indicated the manager probably would be fired if the Yankees lost this series.
“(Torre’s) job is on the line,” Steinbrenner told Bergen Record. “I think we’re paying him a lot of money. He’s the highest-paid manager in baseball, so I don’t think we’d take him back if we don’t win this series.”
Bloomberg doesn’t believe Steinbrenner would make good on such a threat.
“George is a guy who really cares very much about [his] team,” Bloomberg said. “He’s brought a lot of excitement and entertainment to New York.”
Torre continued to shrug off the principal owner’s comments yesterday, saying Steinbrenner is entitled to say whatever he wants.
“The first thing you have to understand is he’s the boss,” Torre said. “He owns this team. He can be as critical or as complimentary as he wants to be anytime he wants to be that.
“The fact I’ve been here 12 years and pretty much gotten along with him is the fact I do respect he is the boss. It’s not about how much money he pays me, it’s about that he trusted me with his team and I take that as a very serious and personal responsibility.”
mpuma@nypost.com