[ThePundit]

I've been critical of Joe Torre's managing the last couple of years but it's hard not to be happy for him. He's a class act. And the players love him.

Many of Torre's players, past and present, firmly believe that the Yankees would not have had such success if he had not been at the helm.

There may be no greater praise than that of Derek Jeter, who said: "He's almost like a second father to me."

Said Mariano Rivera: "What sticks out for me most is he's been there for everybody, and I have a lot of respect for that. The kind of man he is, the kind of manager, the kind of friend, it's all you need to continue to move on and to want to succeed. He means all that to me."

Andy Pettitte, who cited Torre's presence as one of the main reasons he returned this year after three seasons with the Astros, echoed Rivera. Said Pettitte: "For me, just his loyalty [stands out]. We've been through a lot together. It's not just as a manager but as a man. I can talk to him about anything. He's just a good friend of mine."

"He never changes his demeanor," said Mike Borzello, the Yankees' bullpen catcher since 1996. "He never lets anyone get too high or too low. It's easy to say and hard to do. He's just such a calming force in a chaotic place, and that's exactly what is needed here."

Yankees Insider: Torre makes history - Newsday.com

[Lefty Noob]

He's definitely in some elite company, becoming just the 10th MLB manager to win 2,000 games. Now Torre's name can be mentioned alongside Walter Alston, Sparky Anderson, Leo Durocher, Bucky Harris, Connie Mack, Joe McCarthy, John McGraw and of course the active guys, Tony LaRussa and Bobby Cox. Considering that those 10 guys are the only 2,000-win skippers in baseball history, how would you rate them? Where does Torre rank on the list?

[MVB]

Torre's the only person on that list to also have 2,000 hits as a player.

[ThePundit]

I don't think Torre is a top 10 of all time. He has a ton of losses, too.