Forget for a second that Joe Torre was born in Brooklyn, became a Giants’ fan as a boy, and managed the New York Yankees to four World Series banners and six appearances. A tried and true New Yorker, Torre has happily moved his base of operations 3,000 miles to the West, and seems to have picked up right where he left off as the new skipper of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

After taking two of three games from the woeful San Francisco Giants, and splitting the first two encounters with the San Diego Padres through Saturday, the Dodgers – picked by most experts to finish third in the tough National League West – may find October baseball in their future if everything falls into place.

Torre does have a strong nucleus to work with, and has veteran leadership in second baseman Jeff Kent, outfielder Juan Pierre, shortstop Rafael Furcal, recently-acquired center fielder Andruw Jones, and oft-injured third baseman Nomar Garciaparra. What gets Torre the most excited are the young bucks like catcher Russell Martin, first baseman James Loney, and right fielder Matt Kemp. That he has a strong starting pitching staff – Brad Penny, Derek Lowe, Chad Billingsley, Hiroki Kuroda, and Jason Schmidt (he’s expected back in May or June after having shoulder surgery last season), along with closer Takashi Saito – will work wonders for the 67-year-old Torre.

In hindsight, was it a bad move to essentially get rid of Torre? It’s still too early to say, but the Bombers are off to a 4-4 start under Joe Girardi, but that should change. It became clear at anyone paying attention that Torre’s time was up, given what principal George Steinbrenner said before the playoffs a season ago.

When the Yankees were ousted by the Detroit Tigers in the American League Division Series in 2006, and then losing to Cleveland in the same round the next year, King George and his sons – Hal and Hank – were going to have their way. Not even Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman could save him, and when Steinbrenner and Co. tendered the one-year, incentive-laden contract, Torre had to refuse. This is a business, and Torre knew this better than most. But the way in which the former catcher/first baseman, was forced to leave the organization after a dozen years, was sad.

A nine-time All-Star, Torre departed amid little fanfare, but the run was utterly impressive, and not likely to be duplicated in the near future. The problem with the contact, according to Torre, was that it was insulting, especially the incentive clauses. Torre said the goal was always to win the World Series. It didn’t help that the Yanks were bounced from the playoffs in the opening round the last three seasons, but the rift began in 2004 when the team lost despite holding a commanding three-games-to-none lead over the Boston Red Sox in the AL Championship Series.

What Torre – the National League Most Valuable Player in 1971 – and his teams accomplished should be looked at with awe and appreciation. Torre easily belongs alongside Miller Huggins, Joe McCarthy, and Casey Stengel – three of the greatest managers in Yankee history. Four times under Torre the Yankees won at least 100 games, including three straight (2002 through 2004) and made the playoffs every season. The fewest number of games the Yankees won was 87 in 2000, but the club claimed the World Series that year by downing the Mets in five games. It didn’t start out rosy, as the city tabloids had a field day when Torre was hired. One famously proclaim on its back page: “Clueless Joe?”

Torre’s record as a manager wasn’t eye-popping. With the Atlanta Braves his teams went 257-229 for a .529 winning percent. With the Mets, Torre’s clubs were 286-420 and .405, while with the St. Louis Cardinals, they went 351-354 and .498. When Torre signed his first Yankee deal, he hadn’t even sniffed a World Series, let alone win one. Maybe the New York tabloids had it right?

Thinking back, all this seems ridiculous, considering what the Bombers accomplished that first season. All Torre did was lead the Yanks to their first Series title since 1978 when Billy Martin and Bob Lemon turned the trick. Beating the heavily-favored Braves in six games may have been slightly surprising. But that 1996 team was littered with brilliant talent like shortstop and AL Rookie of the Year Derek Jeter, center fielder Bernie Williams, catcher Jorge Posada, set-up man Mariano Rivera, and key veterans like third baseman Wade Boggs and right fielder Paul O’Neill. The following season the Yankees lost to the Indians, who came within an eyelash of beating the upstart Florida Marlins in the World Series. At this point, the Yankees were in high gear, and poised to take three straight Series titles, and came within a half inning of making it four straight. In 2001, the team held a 2-1 lead in Game 7 over the Arizona Diamondbacks entering the bottom of the ninth inning, but lost when Rivera couldn’t protect the lead.

Torre was different from previous Yankee managers in that he understood and helped the aggressive baseball beat writers. Where Martin was feisty and combative, and Buck Showalter was overly sensitive, the Brooklyn native was more laid-back, willing to spend time with the press, and always had an open-door policy for his players, which in turn commanded enormous respect.

Torre’s time and legacy in New York will stand forever, and his incredible 12-year run in which his clubs went 1,173-767 for a .605 winning percent, speak to his baseball acumen. Even though Torre is now wearing Dodger blue, and is working for owners Frank and Jamie McCourt, it seems he’ll always be a Gotham boy at heart.