Joe Torre's Dodgers are in contention in the NL West.

AP

Joe Torre was in Los Angeles Sunday night, some 3,000 miles away from dugout at Yankee Stadium that he had roamed for 12 years.

In a perfect world he would have been there to see the final out in "The House That Ruth Built," sitting in the same spot he sat in 1996 as he watched Charlie Hayes catch the final out of the first of his four World Series wins.

In a civilized world the Yankees would have at least mentioned Torre during Sunday’s closing ceremonies. After all it was Torre who led them to the postseason the past 12 years before this.

Then again, why should anyone expect civility from an organization that low-balled and embarrassed Torre on his way out the door last year after everything he had done for them?

Does it really surprise anyone that Torre, with his 10 AL East titles, six AL pennants and four World Series championships, would purposely be left out of a ceremony honoring Yankees legends past and present by an organization that has long had a poor reputation for taking care of its own?

Nearly a year removed from the last game he managed at Yankee Stadium, Torre simply smiles and shrugs off questions about his time in New York. He has more important things to worry about. Unlike the Yankees, he is still playing for something in September as he has his Dodgers in position to win the NL West, which would be only the third time the Dodgers have won the division in the past 20 years.

"My 12 years there were so memorable that I don’t need to be there to say goodbye," said Torre. "I have so many memories that have been such a huge part of my career."

It doesn’t matter that the Yankees failed to mention him one last time Sunday, all Torre has to do is look at the World Series rings he owns to refresh his memory on what his time in New York meant. Since he hardly wears those rings these days, it might just be easier to simply look at the text messages on his cell phone from his former players. 

 "[Derek] Jeter texted me about surfing in my commercial and when we got Manny [Ramirez] he wanted to know if I was growing dreadlocks," said Torre, referencing his much-talked about State Farm commercials where he’s shown surfing, doing yoga and adjusting to life in Los Angeles. "[Jorge] Posada still wants to know about the California lifestyle."