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Yankees-Dodgers Preview

Jun 25, 2010 - 7:10 AM By JEFF MEZYDLO STATS Senior Writer

New York (45-27) at Los Angeles (38-33), 10:10 p.m. EDT

It's been almost three years since Joe Torre ended his 12-year managerial run with the New York Yankees. For some current Yankees, Torre's impact on themselves and the organization will never be forgotten.

For the first time since Torre left the Bronx, the visiting Yankees face their former manager Friday night, when they open a highly anticipated interleague series against his Los Angeles Dodgers.

Torre won 1,173 games and guided the Yankees to the postseason in each of his 12 years in New York - the second-longest managerial run in franchise history. The Yankees won six AL pennants and four World Series during his tenure.

His run in the Bronx ended when he declined to take a pay cut after the 2007 season. Torre has since guided Los Angeles to back-to-back NL West titles.

He left a lasting impression on Yankee stars like Mariano Rivera, Derek Jeter and Jorge Posada.

"We've been through too much to not kind of feel like (Torre is) a Yankee," pitcher Andy Pettitte told the Yankees' official website."

Torre knows emotions could run high, but remains focused on making sure the Dodgers (39-33) build on Thursday's 10-6 win over the Los Angeles Angels that snapped a six-game skid.

"It's going to be crazy, but that's fine," said Torre, who turns 70 next month. "I'm looking forward to seeing some people. The weird part for me is that I'm going to be in that other dugout, pulling against people I've never pulled against before. But the competitiveness is going to come out, and I probably won't think about it as much."

The Yankees and Dodgers, who have met in 11 World Series, are facing each other for the second time in regular-season play. Los Angeles took two of three from New York at Dodger Stadium from June 18-20, 2004.

The AL East-leading Yankees (45-27) enter this set having won four of five, including their final two games at Arizona this week.

"It will be good for us to see what caliber of team we have to beat if we want to win a World Series," Dodgers outfielder Reed Johnson said.

The reigning World Series champs won't make things easy on the Dodgers with CC Sabathia (8-3, 3.68 ERA) taking the ball in the series opener.

The left-hander improved to 4-0 with a 2.48 ERA in June on Sunday, when he allowed four hits in eight innings of a 4-0 win over the Mets on Sunday.

Sabathia, who is 16-7 with a 3.65 ERA in 37 interleague starts, allowed one run and struck out 10 in seven innings of a 7-2, 11-inning win at Dodger Stadium while with Cleveland in 2008. That remains his only appearance against the Dodgers.

Los Angeles slugger Manny Ramirez is 12 for 21 with four homers against Sabathia. Facing the Yankees for the first time since 2008 with Boston, Ramirez is a lifetime .321 hitter with 55 homers and 163 RBIs in 200 games against New York.

He is 16 for 38 with eight RBIs in his last 10 games overall.

Los Angeles' Vicente Padilla (1-1, 6.67) makes his second start after missing two months with a forearm injury. The right-hander allowed four runs in 5 1-3 innings, but didn't get the decision in a 5-4 loss to the Red Sox on Saturday.

Padilla is 1-2 with a 7.65 ERA in four starts against the Yankees.

Batting a major-league leading .362, New York's Robinson Cano is 4 for 11 with a homer off Padilla.

Alex Rodriguez, criticized in Torre's 2009 book "The Yankee Years," is 8 for 55 with 15 strikeouts in 15 games against the Dodgers.