Probably the best article about the Posada situation.

"Here’s where a series of mistakes unfolded on both sides. Posada, too indignant for a long conversation, chose not to explain why he was asking out. And Girardi, who avoids confrontations, didn’t push Posada for an answer.

...

So why the need for an alibi? Because Posada and his handlers under-estimated the Yankees’ wrath. Anyone following the events on Twitter would’ve known that Hal Steinbrenner had contacted the commissioner’s office early in the evening, weighing the possible responses. At the minimum, Posada was facing a two-day fine. At worst, the Yankees were asking about voiding his contract. It was a long fall for one of the most accomplished catchers in Bomber history, a personal favorite of none other than Yogi Berra. Posada was one of the last bridges to the Joe Torre golden era – back when the Yankees were a championship-winning machine.

But his slide toward sub-mediocrity this season is only part of the problem. The fact that Posada would walk away from a war with the Red Sox would’ve been incomprehensible under Torre – or even as recently as 2009, when he was an integral part of the Yankees’ 27th World Series conquest.

That was the former Posada, tough to the point of being indestructible. But Torre never had to shepherd Posada or Derek Jeter or any of the franchise’s guardians toward the ends of their careers."

Girardi's non-confrontational style doesn't always work. Girardi's postgame press conference was quite embarrassing. For all the critiques of Torre, I'd have to think Torre would have handled this situation better than this (e.g., when Knoblauch pulled himself out of the lineup in the middle of a game).

Having said that, some baseball tenets still apply.

When .165 hitters talk, nobody listens.