It is clear by now where George Steinbrenner stands on the World Baseball Classic. Steinbrenner, the Yankees' principal owner, likes it about as much as a 20-game losing streak.
But the tournament is happening, even though the Yankees never voted for it. Now Commissioner Bud Selig wants Steinbrenner to stop complaining.
Selig ordered the Yankees to remove the sign at Legends Field that apologizes to fans for certain players not taking part in exhibition games. Five Yankees -- Johnny Damon, Derek Jeter, Al Leiter, Alex Rodriguez and Bernie Williams -- left the team Thursday to participate in the Classic.
Asked on Sunday in Scottsdale, Arizona, whether he had anything to do with the sign coming down, Selig said, "It didn't come down by itself." Major League Baseball was also considering disciplining the Yankees for the sign.
Steinbrenner said through his spokesman, Howard Rubenstein, that he did not sanction the sign, which misspelled the word Yankees and instructed fans to direct their comments to the commissioner's office or the players association.
"He had nothing to do with it," Rubenstein said. "It was the ticket office who put it up. They sold all the seats, and they felt that if there were any complaints, people should call the commissioner. But George said they were going to take it down."
Steinbrenner has said publicly that he would rather his players focus on preparing for the season, and he praised Hideki Matsui last week for staying with the Yankees instead of playing for Japan. Whether or not he posted the sign, the wording was consistent with Steinbrenner's feelings.
Under the heading "World Baseball Classic," the sign read: "Thank you for expressing your concerns. We are sorry that certain players will not be present for portions of Spring Training. These players have elected to participate in The World Baseball Classic. The World Baseball Classic is an event sanctioned by the Commissioner of Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players Association."
The sign went on, misspelling the team's nickname: "The New York Yankess did not vote to support this event. Any comments you have regarding the World Baseball Classic should be directed to either The Commissioner of Major League Baseball or The Major League Baseball Players Assoc."
Steinbrenner said early in spring training that players were "risking a lot" by playing. He also agreed when a reporter suggested that fans would miss seeing the star players in spring training games.
Their absence conceivably makes it harder for the Yankees to win those games, and Steinbrenner becomes restless when his team loses. The Yankees dropped their first three exhibition games before defeating the Toronto Blue Jays, 3-2, at Knology Park on Sunday.
"You want to win," manager Joe Torre said. "I know it's not important, and you stress playing to win, but sometimes you can't control the outcome. But I don't care when it is, you always feel better about yourself when you win a game, there's no question."
The Yankees played with only three everyday players in their lineup. Robinson Cano started at second base, Jorge Posada caught and Matsui was the designated hitter. Jason Giambi had the day off.
Gary Sheffield was a late scratch. He made the trip and took batting practice, but he did not play after telling the coach Lee Mazzilli that his right hamstring felt stiff.
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