The Ghost of Ineffective Middle Relief Past

Let me preface this by saying that I like Joe Torre. It was probably time for the Yankees to make a change, but the team had a ton of success on Torre's watch, he seems like an eminently decent human being, and I wish him all the best. That said, I am not looking forward to reading what's sure to be a plethora of articles that begin just like this one:

“VERO BEACH, Fla. -- Joe Torre might have looked out of place wearing Los Angeles Dodgers blue. He was right at home as a winner.”

This is referring, by the way, to the first game of spring training. Gag me.

Incidentally, the Dodgers' win came against the Braves, whose pitchers included Matt DeSalvo and Colter Bean*. Given that (as of last week, anyway) Torre has Tanyon Sturtze, Esteban Loaiza, and Mike Myers in camp, I'm forced to conclude that the man is suffering some sort of karmic payback for his bullpen mismanagement over the years. You can move to the other side of the country, but you can't escape your past...

"Without their visits," said the Ghost, "you cannot hope to shun the path I tread."

*Based solely on this fact, I hereby predict that the Braves have no chance in hell at the NL East title.