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Lofton: Sheffield is right about Yankees' Torre
Gary Sheffield isn't the only player who feels Joe Torre treated black players differently than white players, as Sheffield's former teammate, Kenny Lofton, chimed in with his thoughts yesterday before his Rangers played in Anaheim.
Lofton, who played for Torre in 2004, concurred with Sheffield's assessment of the Yankee manager and his attitude toward African-American players.
"All I can say is, Sheffield knows what he's talking about," Lofton told The Associated Press when asked to respond to Sheffield's comments about Torre. "That's all I'm going to say."
Lofton's one-year tenure in pinstripes was a tumultuous one, as he was signed to a two-year deal by George Steinbrenner to hit leadoff and replace Bernie Williams in center field, only to have Torre declare the job an open competition in spring training.
During the team's season-opening trip to Japan that March, Lofton griped about being batting ninth in the opener despite the fact that he hit .174 with no steals during spring training. "He's the manager. He makes the lineup and that's it. I can't make that decision," Lofton said at the time. "I can't take that pen out of his hand. The pen is mightier than the sword."
Lofton hit .275 with three homers, 18 RBI and seven stolen bases in 83 games for the Yankees that season, batting leadoff in 41 of those contests. He was traded to the Phillies that December for reliever Felix Rodriguez.
Source: nydailynews.com
Lofton, who played for Torre in 2004, concurred with Sheffield's assessment of the Yankee manager and his attitude toward African-American players.
"All I can say is, Sheffield knows what he's talking about," Lofton told The Associated Press when asked to respond to Sheffield's comments about Torre. "That's all I'm going to say."
Lofton's one-year tenure in pinstripes was a tumultuous one, as he was signed to a two-year deal by George Steinbrenner to hit leadoff and replace Bernie Williams in center field, only to have Torre declare the job an open competition in spring training.
During the team's season-opening trip to Japan that March, Lofton griped about being batting ninth in the opener despite the fact that he hit .174 with no steals during spring training. "He's the manager. He makes the lineup and that's it. I can't make that decision," Lofton said at the time. "I can't take that pen out of his hand. The pen is mightier than the sword."
Lofton hit .275 with three homers, 18 RBI and seven stolen bases in 83 games for the Yankees that season, batting leadoff in 41 of those contests. He was traded to the Phillies that December for reliever Felix Rodriguez.
Source: nydailynews.com