Interesting news from the NY Post. Essentially it says that the managerial decision is Cashman’s.
http://tinyurl.com/ynvvkv

I don’t know if I buy it, but, if that’s true, that probably means Girardi.

I preferred Girardi and first, but today, I started moving toward Mattingly. Now, I’d be satisfied with either.

I agree with the premise that Girardi is the more prepared and the better choice to manage the Yanks right now, but I disagree with your assertion that no team would be interested in Mattingly. There have been managers far less qualified who have interviewed with other clubs and even gotten hired (Ron Washington, Ozzie Guillen, Bob Geren, Manny Acta and probably the best example, Alan Trammel). All of those guys had very little if any previous managerial experience. They all were qualified for different reasons though. Washington has a great baseball knowledge, Guillen is a spark plug, Geren knew the organization, Acta has worked with some of the best (like Frank Robinson) while Trammel was nothing more than an even less qualified version of Mattingly. Hell even Willie Randolph had never been more than a coach. Point is, there are a lot of different reasons why managerial candidates are attractive to clubs. The very fact that Mattingly was such a cerebral player and that he has spent even a few years around guys like Torre would qualify him at least as a possible candidate elsewhere. I think everyone just knew what Donnie’s intentions were. He always had his eyes set on the Yanks managerial job. He wasn’t the kind of guy who would go wherever he could get a job.

That said, Girardi is obviously more qualified. Catchers make great managers (hello Torre and Scioscia). He’s also an incredibly bright guy (Northwestern grad), has a working relationship with the veterans, has worked with kids in Florida, can handle the media, etc. Like you said, Steve, Girardi is really everything the Yankees could want in a manager. But it’s just such bad timing because Donnie came back for a reason and to not hire him now means to never hire him.

Girardi has the highest chance of being the manager that gives the Yankees the best chance to win in 2008. It’s really that simple.

Steve, I couldn’t agree more.

And as much as alienating Mattingly would be bad for the team right now, given what the Torre fallout was, it’s just how it’s gotta be. Mattingly might be disappointed but I hope he’s honest and intelligent enough to understand why he might not be the best choice right now. Hopefully 1-2 years from now he’ll be able to get over the disappointment and once again be a part of the greatest alumni club in baseball history.