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Joe Torre Diagnosed With Prostate Cancer

New York Yankees Manager Joe Torre said today that he has been diagnosed with prostate cancer and will leave the ball club for a period of time to undergo treatment.

"I feel fine," Torre said, "and I am looking forward to taking care of this problem and getting back to work."

Said Yankees' Principal Owner George M. Steinbrenner: "Joe will handle this situation with the same determination and courage that he has always demonstrated. Our prayers are with him."

Word of Torre's condition came two days after Yankees great Joe DiMaggio died of complications from lung-cancer surgery and on the same day Darryl Strawberry was to make his return from colon cancer surgery in October. Strawberry was in the Yankees' lineup Wednesday for a split-squad game with Boston.

And it was just last week that former Yankees star Catfish Hunter appeared at the team's camp, too weak to shake hands because of Lou Gehrig's Disease.

"It is a very hard day for all of us," Strawberry said. "We as a team are devastated. Like when it happened with me, we as a team will stick together."

The Yankees have made no announcement as to who will run the club in Torre's absence, although bench coach Don Zimmer appears to be the most likely candidate.

Torre told catcher Joe Girardi before the Yankees left Tampa this morning. Girardi told the rest of the team before the two-hour bus ride.

"The guys were very sad," Girardi said. "It is hard when it hits so close to you. Joe was upbeat. He's a fighter and he will make it through this."

Prostate cancer is second only to lung cancer among cancer deaths in American men, taking about 40,000 lives annually.

Most prostate cancer happens sporadically; patients have no particular family history of the disease. However, about 1 in 10 cases seems to be clearly inherited, because many men in the same family have it.

Torre officially signed a two-year contract extension worth a reported $2 million per season February 24 to remain manager through 2001. He is scheduled to earn slightly more than $1 million in 1999.

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Joe DiMaggio: 1914-1999

March 8, 1999 Joe DiMaggio, one of the greatest in a long line of Yankee heroes, died Monday at his home after a long illness, according to his lawyer, Morris Engelberg. DiMaggio, whose 56-game hitting streak remains as one of the most untouchable records in all of sports, died shortly after midnight. His family, including two grandchildren and his brother Dom, and close friends were at his bedside. "DiMaggio, the consummate gentleman on and off the field, fought his illness as hard as he played the game of baseball and with the same dignity, style and grace with which he lived his life," said Engelberg “Joltin’ Joe’s” Yankees won nine World Series and 10 American League pennants in his 13 seasons as baseball’s consummate professional. A career .325 hitter, DiMaggio captured the attention of all America during the summer of 1941 with The Streak, becoming one of professional sports’ first true celebrities.

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Pat Meares lifted a fly ball to right field as David Wells looked on with unabated anticipation. He hopped up and down while the ball lazily drifted to Paul O'Neill, who was chasing it towards the right field line. Finally, the ball plopped into O'Neill's glove and Wells could celebrate. He pumped his fist twice as a mob of Yankees swarmed him on the pitching mound while the crowd erupted into a standing ovation. The Yankees lifted Wells onto their shoulder and allowed him to bask in the limelight in eerily similar fashion to what happened to Doc Gooden in 1996. On this day - May 17, 1998 - Wells had done something only one other pitcher had done in the illustrious history of the New York Yankees: he had thrown a perfect game.
The legendary Don Larsen may have thrown his perfect game in the World Series, but this game was just as special for Wells. Wells, who graduated from the same high school (Point Loma) that Larsen did, still hadn't fully realized what he had done by the time he met the press. Incredulous may be the best word to describe Wells' unique state.

"Hasn't sunk in yet," a beaming Wells said. "It's a dream come true."

Wells said that he realized he was approaching greatness "about the seventh inning," but Manager Joe Torre and pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre realized that his could be a special day for Wells even earlier.

"When Mel came out of the bullpen today, I asked him, ' how's he doing?' and he said, 'Wow,' " Torre said.

Wells' impressive stuff carried from the first batter all the way through the 27th. The robust left- hander toyed with the Twins for most of the afternoon, using a wide array of pitches that were working to confoud the helpless batters. Catcher Javier Valentin struck out on a curveball. Pat Meares whiffed on a chanegup. John Shave k'd on a cutter. Ron Coomer went down swinging chasing a high fastball. No matter what the pitch, the Twins had little chance of making contact. Overall, 11 Twins' batters went down on strikes against the dominting Wells.

"(He) had pop," catcher Jorge Posada said. "Kept going and kept it low."

According to Posada, the batters who didn't strike out were still limited to a specific routine.

"Strike one, strike two, fly out. Strike one, strike two, fly out," Posada said. "He was like that the whole game."

Both Posada and Torre said they felt that this could be a special day around the fourth or fifth inning. Torre said, "that's when I started kidding with Mel (Stottlemyre, about taking Wells out of the game)."

Amazingly, there were very few threats to Wel's perfect game. He went to three balls on four batters, but eventually retired them on weak fly balls. The hardest hit ball of the afternoon belonged to Coomer, who lined a shot to Chuck Knobaluch in the eighth inning. Knoblauch knocked it down and threw out Coomer by a couple of feet.

"Not to downplay it, but it was just another play," Knoblauch said. His approach to the line drive was very simple - "Just stay in front of it," he said. "If I could catch, I catch it. If not, I knock it down. When it's hit that hard you have time."

Then it was onto the ninth, where Shave, Valentin and, finally, Meares failed to make any solid contact, lofting three harmless pop-ups into the gloves of the New York Yankees. The man who had grown up a diehard Yankee fan had thrown a perfect game in Yankee Stadium. What did Wells say when his dream was finally realized? Posada said Wells "Said six times, 'Jorge, this is great. This is great.' " It certainly was.

click here to go to the official new york yankees tribute to Joe DiMaggio

click here if you want to go to the official Paul Oneill website

Sam Albahari
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