CLEVELAND – Bernie Williams questioned what the Orioles were doing when they fired former Yankees coach Lee Mazzilli as their manager yesterday.
“It’s a very sad an unfortunate situation,” Williams said. “He was fighting uphill from the get-go. He was put in a situation where he couldn’t pick his own coaches. To do the job he did with the team he had was remarkable.
“He opened up eyes around major league baseball and he will have another opportunity,” Williams continued. “He is a good players guy. I have nothing but great things to say about him.”
Joe Torre, who managed Mazzilli with the Mets and had Mazzilli on his Yankees staff for four years, talked to the ex-Orioles manager yesterday morning.
“Maz is a good manager and will do a good job down the road,” said Torre, who avoided the possibility that Mazzilli could rejoin his staff in the future. “I said, ‘Welcome to the [fired manager’s] club.’ ”
Mariano Rivera was shocked to hear the news.
“I don’t know what they are thinking about,” Rivera said. “Everybody got hurt there.”
Yankees captain Derek Jeter paid Mazzilli a huge compliment.
“He is a lot like Mr. Torre,” Jeter said. “He is laid back and always positive.”