It’s an idea out of left field — or is it right? What if Yankees manager Joe Torre, on the verge of losing his job, decided to trade his pin-striped uniform for a pin-striped suit and run for mayor of New York?

Mayor Bloomberg said yesterday that Mr. Torre “could run anything” and a leading pollster, Maurice Carroll, said he would make “a superb mayor.”

There’s been no indication that Mr. Torre would try to succeed Mr. Bloomberg in 2009, but if he did jump into the race, support from his wide fan base could turn into votes at the polls.

Mr. Carroll, the director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute, said Mr. Torre has all the traits of a good mayor: He knows how to handle tough people, deal with adversity, and keep his cool through it all.

“He’s a good manager,” he said. “Dealing with 25-year-old egomaniacal jocks is not the easiest way to make a living, but he did it.”

Mr. Torre is good friends with Mayor Giuliani, frequently appears with politicians, and could tap his powerful network of supporters if he were to launch a campaign. While not in possession of Mr. Bloomberg’s fortune, Mr. Torre has earned about $50 million as the Yankees manager, enough for a candidate to lay the groundwork for a campaign.

Born in Brooklyn in 1940, Mr. Torre is a New York icon with name recognition most politicians can only dream of. He led the Yankees to four World Series championships and played for the Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves, St. Louis Cardinals, and Mets before becoming a coach.

With his cap tipped slightly to the air, Mr. Torre has endeared himself to fans of both teams in the city during his intimate post game press conferences that rarely feel contrived, something so many other public officials can’t say.

It is not lost on New Yorkers that over the past 12 years of enduring contentious interviews, Mr. Torre has never lost his temper or made excuses for his team’s failures. He is known as a loyal coach who stands up for his players.

In a 2002 Newsweek survey that asked respondents which sports figure could lead the country, Mr. Torre came in second place, behind only Michael Jordan.

If he did run for office, he’d join a host of former athletes and coaches who have made leap from the sporting arena to political one.
Rep. Heath Shuler, a Democrat of North Carolina, is a former NFL quarterback, and Governor Schwarzenegger, a Republican of California, is a former bodybuilder.

A former Republican congressman of Nebraska, Tom Osborne, coached the University of Nebraska football team and Jack Kemp, a former vice presidential nominee and former Republican congressman of New York, was a quarterback in the American Football League.

A Democratic political consultant, Henry Sheinkopf, said Mr. Torre’s time with the Yankees could be viewed as a “mayor-in-training” program. He said Mr. Torre knows how to manage a complex organization and responds well to his constituents — in this case, his fans.

“He’s tough enough,” he said. “If you can deal with the boss of the Yankees, you can probably deal with anyone.”

He is not affiliated with a political party and his political views are a mystery to many who keep a close watch on City Hall. He last voted in November 2005, according to an online document database.

“As far as we know his politics are pinstriped, neither red nor blue,” Mr. Sheinkopf said.

In 2002, Mr. Torre founded the Safe At Home Foundation to raise awareness about domestic abuse. He grew up with an emotionally abusive father who was a physically abusive husband, according to the foundation’s Web site, and has appeared on television urging children to seek help if they are in an abusive household and not blame themselves.

In 2005, the foundation opened its first center designed to connect students with professional counselors.

Several people interviewed, including those who praised him, emphasized that there’s no reason to think he’ll enter politics. Mr. Torre could not be reached for comment yesterday, and an interview request left with the Yankees received no response. Running for mayor would also require Mr. Torre to move to the city from his home in Harrison.

A professor of public affairs at Baruch College, Douglas Muzzio, scoffed at the idea of Mr. Torre running for mayor.

“No way. I just can’t see it,” he said. “I’m telling you, he’s going to take a vacation if he gets fired.” He said he doesn’t think Mr. Torre has the right DNA to manage a city the size and complexity of New York. “He’s too laid back and civilized to run,” Mr. Muzzio said. “He’d be too sane.”

Mayor Koch said he had no idea if Mr. Torre would run, but added that if he did, “Yankee fans undoubtedly would look kindly on his candidacy.”

The Yankees are the city’s favorite team, with 51% of New Yorkers allied with the Bronx Bombers and 35% of respondents saying they are Mets fans, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released in late August.

An owner of the New York City Hot Dog Company, Brett Straniere, didn’t need to be convinced.

“Joe Torre for mayor? Absolutely,” he said yesterday. “I’m sure he can handle the city, if he can handle Steinbrenner.”