Yankees: The end of the Joe Girardi era in the Bronx

According to David Kaplan of ESPN 1000 in Chicago, Joe Girardi and the Yankees have decided to part ways after 10 winning seasons.

Having just concluded the fourth and final year of a $16 million contract extension, one that saw him oversee the rise of an upstart group of future stars that fell just one game shy of a World Series berth, manager Joe Girardi and the Yankees are officially going their separate ways.

Girardi gave a short statement to WFAN following the breaking news.

“With a heavy heart, I come to you because the Yankees have decided not to bring me back,” Girardi said in a statement. “I’d like to thank the Steinbrenner family for believing in me and giving me this wonderful opportunity. I would like to thank (general manager) Brian Cashman and his staff for hiring me and always trying to improve the team.”“Finally, I’d like to thank the Fans for their great support as a Player, Coach and Manager and the lasting memories of their passion and excitement during the Playoff Games, especially the final six games which will remain in my heart forever,” Girardi said.More from Yanks Go YardYankees’ Clay Holmes trade just became even bigger disaster for PiratesMets stealing New York Post’s entire Yankees offseason plan is hilariousPredicting Yankees-Diamondbacks LF trade package after Ken Rosenthal updateYankees add to championship core with Wilmer Difo signingAaron Judge’s ‘breadcrumbs’ showed he was never leaving Yankees, has more moves in mind

The 53-year-old Girardi, who had the unenviable job of replacing the great Joe Torre in 2008, never once had a losing season during his tenure in the Bronx, going 910-710, a .562 win percentage). In that time, the Yankees won the 2009 World Series, reaching the playoffs six times.

Recently, Girardi spoke glowingly about the future of the organization and the talent coming through the pipeline. Yet all along, reports from the front office painted a picture of uneasiness between the field general and general manager Brian Cashman.

Joel Sherman recently said that the club was concerned about how much longer Girardi even wanted to manage, and how he might not be the one to get the most out of a group of predominately young players.

Clearly, Girardi has always worn his heart on his sleeve. Whether it was him breaking down at a news conference or the vitriol he often showed protecting one of his own, the Yankees will need someone to rally around, the way they did after Game 2 of the ALDS, when Girardi failed to call for a crucial replay at the time.

Who might that new skipper be? Well, you’re going to hear a lot of names, probably beginning with the headline-grabbing, Alex Rodriguez.

But I’m sure the organization will start its search with those who have more experience, including bench coach Rob Thomson, first base coach Tony Pena, Triple-A manager Al Pedrique and Mets hitting coach Kevin Long (though, Long was made the be the fall guy for the 2014 Yanks’ struggles).

YES Network’s Jack Curry said on Twitter that he expects the Yankees to hire someone that Cashman has worked with before, will have to accept heavy influence from the front office and won’t make $4 million per season.

Whoever eventually gets the job will be expected to win immediately.

Next: Scott Boras questions Yanks about Jacoby Ellsbury

It’s widely believed that Cashman will return for his 21st season as Yanks’ GM.