Bodog Beat

Joe Torre called a press conference Friday to talk about the reasons for rejecting the Yankees one-year contract offer. (AP Images)

After rejecting the Yankees' contract offer Thursday, former Yankees manager Joe Torre called a press conference to explain his reasons.

"I just felt the contract offer, the terms of the contract, were probably the thing I had the toughest time with — the one year for one thing, the incentives for another thing," Torre said. "I've been there 12 years and I didn't think motivation was needed."

Torre, who won four World Series with the Yankees, was given an offer that would cut his base pay to $5 million, a reduction of $2.5 million, along with $3 million in performance-based incentives and an $8 million option for 2009 if the Yankees won the 2008 AL pennant. However, Torre felt that having a salary reduction with tacked on incentives was "an insult".

"The fact that somebody is reducing your salary is just telling me they're not satisfied with what you're doing," Torre said. "There really was no negotiation involved. I was hoping there would be, but there wasn't."

He felt committment, not money, was the biggest factor in his decision.

"Yes it was a very generous offer," he said. "But it wasn't the type of commitment that 'we're trying to do something together,' as opposed to 'let me see what you can do for me.'"