Now that the New York Yankees have officially been eliminated from postseason play (lost in the 1st round for the 3rd consecutive year), it doesn't look very likely that Manager Joe Torre's contract will be renewed. Yankees owner George Steinbrenner went on record recently basically stating that if the Yankees did not advance to the ALCS, Torre would likely not be retained.

We know that "The Boss" likes to bring in big name managers to oversee his club. And with the group of superstars the Yankees have, one has to wonder if a younger manager would be able to command the respect of the current roster. Don Mattingly is a Steinbrenner favorite and a Yankee legend, but he's never managed a single game. Joe Girardi works for Yankees TV and has a Manager of the Year award under his belt but many wonder how he would handle the pressures of New York if he imploded in Florida while managing the Marlins.

Tony LaRussa is a free agent. His good friend, former Cardinals GM Walt Jocketty just parted ways with the Cardinals, meaning LaRussa's ties to St. Louis aren't nearly as strong. How about Tony LaRussa, the man who won a World Series with the Cardinals last season, as the new Yankees skipper? LaRussa is much more of a strategy guy than Torre. But he's not a "player's manager". He runs a tight ship. Maybe that's what the Yankees need though - discipline.

So if Torre is not retained in New York and LaRussa departs St. Louis, there would be a job opening with the Cardinals. Torre knows St. Louis and the Cards organization well. He starred as a player (1969-74) and later managed the team (1990-95). Torre, likely in the latter stages of his career, would seemingly still want to manage a contender and the Cards would present him with that opportunity. Players like Albert Pujols and Scott Rolen would likely welcome the more laid back Torre's approach.

Torre made $7M this season to manage the Yankees, so he'd probably be looking for a similar salary.  LaRussa could probably command $8M - $10M per season for managing the Yankees if George Steinbrenner is enamored with having a big name manage his club.

Watch how the situations in New York and St. Louis play out because we just might have one of the biggest manager swaps in the history of baseball coming our way.