LOS ANGELES – When George Steinbrenner told Don Zimmer he was going to replace Joe Torre as Yankees manager until Torre returned from prostate cancer surgery, Zimmer knew it wasn’t going to be a cakewalk. Three stints as a Yankee coach had prepared the baseball lifer for the bizarre ways of the Yankees’ galaxy.
However, the Hideki (Fat Toad) Irabu situation had Zimmer a little out of sorts yesterday at Dodger Stadium, where the Yankees went through a two-hour workout prior to exhibition games against the Dodgers tonight and tomorrow.
”You want to be honest and one of the things I don’t want to do is lie,” Zimmer said. ”But there are certain things you can’t tell people.”
Like what went on in the multiple meetings between Yankee brass and Irabu following Thursday’s action when Irabu again failed to cover first, was booed off out of Legends Field in Tampa and called a ”Fat Pus-ie Toad” by Steinbrenner. Later, Irabu begged the Yankees to leave him in Tampa instead of flying with the World Champions to the West Coast and the start of the season. When Irabu returns is guesswork at this point.
”If he comes back, I am not going to say anything,” Zimmer said. ”I am going to do what I am going to do. As long as I am managing this team until Joe Torre comes back, the 25 guys we got, I will make the decisions. That’s the way it will be, there is no other way. If they want you, they want you. If they don’t want you, then I ain’t going to worry about that either.”
Yesterday, Zimmer decided Ramiro Mendoza will start Wednesday against the A’s in Oakland. Had Irabu not melted Thursday, he would have been handed the ball.
”If anybody catches hell, it will be me,” Zimmer said. ”I made the decision to start Mendoza on Wednesday.”
Asked if he had spoken to the Tampa headquarters, where Irabu went through a light exercise program yesterday morning, Zimmer said he had no plans to.
”I ain’t calling nobody,” Zimmer said. ”They can call me if they find me but I ain’t going to stay in my room waiting for any calls. There is no reason for me to call anybody. I am sure I will get a call or calls. The only guy I will call is Joe, just to see how he is doing.”
Judging by his answers and tone of voice, it was easy to assume Zimmer was ticked at something or somebody.
”I am not mad,” Zimmer said. ”I don’t want to sit here with you people and act like a dummy. I don’t want to lie to nobody. Everybody is different and everybody has different insight. There are certain things I don’t want to say. I feel at this time that’s the best way to go about it.”