from the New York Times

TAMPA, Fla. Jorge Posada darted into the Yankee clubhouse a few minutes before 8 a.m. on March 7, tossed a few things in his equipment bag and quickly dashed out. He was the last player to report before the team left on a road trip, and he could have been a fifth grader afraid he would be late for school.

Posada is allowed such minor indiscretions now. He was not taking the team bus that day, and his companion for the two-hour ride to Fort Myers, Fla., was his biggest fan. In the passenger seat of Posada's Porsche was Joe Girardi.

This is a spring of firsts and lasts for Girardi, a time to prepare and reflect. He is surely the only catcher-slash-broadcaster in any spring training camp, with a job awaiting him at the YES Network if he fails to make the Yankee roster. Girardi's best - and probably only - chance to make the team is if Posada or his backup, John Flaherty, is injured.

Girardi spent four seasons with the Yankees, 1996 to 1999, and his total number of games declined each season. Posada's games increased annually over the same span. Since Girardi left, Posada has blossomed into an All-Star and so much more.

"You just see how becoming a father, a husband, and playing every day has really matured him," Girardi said. "He's not a little kid anymore; it's like he's a man. He's focused on what his job is and what he needs to do as a player, a husband and father. It's great to see."

Posada played briefly for the 1996 Yankees, when Girardi was the starter and the Yankees won their first World Series under Manager Joe Torre. Girardi noticed Posada's talent and accepted what it meant. The kid was a switch-hitter with more power, a better throwing arm and more good years ahead. Girardi knew he was looking at the future.

"My theory on the game is never let anyone take your job because they work harder," Girardi said. "But if someone's better and more talented, there's not a whole lot you can do."

Instead of resisting, Girardi told Posada he was simply holding the job for him. He urged Posada to act as if he belonged, and passed on the mental toughness he had gathered in a career that began in 1989. Posada never forgot.

"Veteran guys are very particular about their jobs," the 32-year-old Posada said. "I don't think I could be as good as he was with me with another kid. It's your job, your future."

Girardi, 39, has always thought ahead. He has said for years that the idea of managing appealed to him, and he sensed before last season that his career was almost over.

As a backup with the St. Louis Cardinals, Girardi prayed for guidance about whether to keep playing. A serious back injury at the end of spring training in 2003 seemed to be a sign. Girardi finished the season, but played more games on minor league rehabilitation assignments than with the Cardinals. "I just thought my 15 years were up," he said.

Before the end of last season, Girardi put out feelers to the YES Network. That intrigued John Filippelli, the executive vice president for production and programming of YES, who had covered the World Series for Fox and knew Girardi to be insightful and articulate. But Filippelli did not have instant recall of Girardi's voice.

Last October, Filippelli was driving through Connecticut to visit his son when he turned the radio to a Braves-Cubs playoff game. The ESPN Radio color commentator impressed Filippelli, who pulled off at a truck stop, got a cup of coffee and listened closely for 20 minutes.

"I said to myself, `Who is this?' " Filippelli said. "I didn't know it was him, but whoever it was, he was pretty good."

Girardi and YES were soon working on a deal in which Girardi would work 50 Yankee games this season, shifting between the broadcast booth and the studio. He is scheduled to debut in the booth with Jim Kaat and Ken Singleton for the Yankees' home series with Kansas City that starts on April 30.

The hitch is that Girardi could still be playing. General Manager Brian Cashman invited him to come to spring training as a nonroster player. [Girardi has played in seven games, going 2 for 11.] If he makes the Yankees - or decides to try playing for another team, which he said is unlikely - the YES job will be waiting when he retires.

"He has a standing offer with us," Filippelli said. "I believe very much that he's going to be a sensational broadcaster."

For now, Girardi is comfortable chatting with future and current colleagues. Reporters approach him for insights on National Leaguers with whom he has played since leaving the Yankees. Teammates seek him out for wisdom and advice.

Yankee players dread the trip to Fort Myers, the longest ride they take in spring training. But Posada enjoyed it because of his time with Girardi. They talked about baseball, family and Girardi's plans.

"One on one," Posada said, with the kind of reverence reserved for a mentor.

"I love seeing him around," Posada added. "He's got something good to say about everything. There's not one person in the game that doesn't like Joe Girardi. He's just a great person."

Girardi may no longer be the best option to back up Posada. But he is the right choice for YES, Filippelli said, for more than his insights. Girardi has played less than a third of his career in New York, but to many fans he embodies the title teams of his era.

"You look at guys like Paul O'Neill, Tino Martinez, Scott Brosius and David Cone, and as time goes by, they resonate louder and louder," Filippelli said. "What they accomplished as a team, the whole being bigger than the sum of their parts — those teams will only get larger in history. Those guys resonate, and Joe is one of those guys."