Weigh in on Baseball Coach Salary Controversy

Alex May 10, 2012 at 01:10 pm

Also question why school supers make four times that salary and voters keep approving our school budgets,
This is like questioning why a cop is parked on a dead end for an hour when drugs are for sale up the street or why the Roslyn viaduct took this long to complete. The issue is politics, if you disagree then take it up with the legis or your local city council/town board Asking the public to "discuss Rustys salary" is like asking the public to decide if cops should make 30,000 or 130,000 To put this in perspective, private contractors while doing road repair have 10 guys working on site and 10 more for moral support, yet posts don't go viral about that. Use your time productively

Alex May 10, 2012 at 01:14 pm

I want to add that my above statement is NOT against cops, it was purely an example and is not to be taken otherwise, it's sad about what Rusty did, even worse for the child alleged involved. The situation should of never happened and maybe there should be psych screening prior to working with kids in municipal jobs.
I have a child and I would be beside myself of this was mine. I would be demanding answers and accountability.

concerned citizen May 10, 2012 at 01:20 pm

so we find out there is a baseball coach.. is there a football coach, lacross, checkers coach? .. how many of these positions are out there at taxpayer expense.. follow the money ..who authorized the position of baseball coach .. was it someone who lives in massapequa ?

Erika Taryn May 10, 2012 at 01:32 pm

I'm sorry, but this is just the most ridiculous, inflammatory thing. First of all, on the question of salaries and job descriptions, the writer of this article has a pretty obnoxious typo in paragraph five. Secondly, I think that it is also important that we gather a bit more information about the job description, because my understanding is there is one person who oversees each sports clinic (baseball, basketball, etc.) and is responsible for all of the athletic activities and training in that area throughout the Town. This position also requires a presence at the various summer camps run by the Town. In this sense, I think it's more than just coaching a particular sport. Thirdly, I'd like to again bring up the point of the distribution of tax dollars: only ten cents of each dollar goes to the Town of Oyster Bay.
Now, I don't work for the Town, but I am very proud of the fact that TOBAY has such fantastic parks, so many free activities for families and children, and has not been seriously impacted by the financial crisis hitting our country. This is due to responsible spending. The flip side of this all is that if the Town were to do away with these athletic programs people would complain that services to their children are being cut and people are out of jobs. In fact, these services are the reason move to TOBAY in the first place.

Erika Taryn May 10, 2012 at 01:36 pm

I'd also like to mention that no one knows how long he held the position for. These positions are frequently union positions with mandatory incremental salary increases over time.

FJDietz May 10, 2012 at 01:38 pm

There is a website that list all municipal workers salaries in New York State. I remember looking up to see how much a particular residential building inspector from TOBAY was being paid to run around in his shorts and Hawaiian shirts to harass homeowners. He was being paid $104,000!! Here is the link to the website:
http://www.empirecenter.org/AboutUS/news_releases/2011/10/2011munipaynewstny100411.cfm

Joe Dowd (Editor) May 10, 2012 at 03:45 pm

Erika: Thanks for pointing out the typo. It's fixed. Let me point out this. In the original story, the town said: During that time, Torres conducted clinics and provided instruction on the fundamentals of baseball and used a town-owned van to travel to the clinics. His annual salary is $83,372. He had been employed in this position for the past 12 years, since 2000. The Town said this position is the only one of its kind, meaning, there is no town employed hockey coach or lacrosse coach, etc. Hope that helps.

Joe Dowd (Editor) May 10, 2012 at 03:46 pm

Folks: For reference: See our original story here. http://patch.com/A-thmH
We'll be updating through the week.

John Rennhack May 10, 2012 at 03:57 pm

Erika, TOBAY is over 3/4 $billion in debt. Bond rating was lowered last year.

Erika Taryn May 10, 2012 at 04:20 pm

To make $83,372 after 12 years of work in a municipal office doesn't seem to be unreasonable.

ED ZEPPELL May 10, 2012 at 04:25 pm

Tom Sabellico and his political cronies from Farmingdale got him his job. Made especially for him. Fat Tom im sure is running from Rusty now. Rusty and Tom were very close friends. Sabellico is an underhanded crook and I hope he and his buddies go down for this.

ED ZEPPELL May 10, 2012 at 04:29 pm

Plus they dont even see that he has a record for carrying a massive amount of drugs? Great job Tom Sabellico. Hope your happy. It never was about the kids with you. Just how many ex Yankees you could snuggle up with. Just like you had them name a field in Farmingdale after your father even though he never coached in Farmingdale. So much can be done when you have politicians in your pocket. Stand by Rusty now Tom. You got him the job

Jerry May 10, 2012 at 04:31 pm

Its all about our elected OFFICIAL taking care of the BOYS they are expected to
support. The taxpayer is not suspose to complain , just pay. The person in question was a sports hero , in all the years past How Many children have there been. That is the big Question

Casey May 10, 2012 at 04:43 pm

$83,000 a year salary is a joke, TOBAY has dozens of communties that run their own baseball programs The position created is another wasted position that TOBAY has created
Mr Torres did come to my sons day camp at Marjorie Post in Massapequa last year for the day, ohh wait for 2 hours, the program was not set up for baseball, kids attending this day camp were not there for baseball.....more wasted taxpayer money

Kristen Ferrari May 10, 2012 at 05:06 pm

Alex, you make some good points, and people should separate the issues. If the charges are true, people need to understand that many pedophiles are always "that nice guy." They don't wear signs announcing they are there to molest your children. I also disagree with your psych screening idea. First there's a cost factor behind that. Second, it strips people of the presumption of innocence provided under our Constitution. And really, the real reason is that is there really a screening that could tell whether someone is a pedophile or not? I don't think that there is a criteria short of a person admitting they like little kids that would let someone determine that someone is at risk of being a pedophile.
The job is a separate issue from the charges. Would any of us know about his position or salary had he not been arrested? No. I'll be honest and admit I have never looked over TOB budgets to see what positions there are, what the salary is, and whether the position is justified. How many people do that until a news story like this comes out?

Town worker May 10, 2012 at 05:50 pm

The town is one of the most corrupt organization around. Believe me I have firs hand knowledge of this and most would be horrififed if they only knew how there tax dollars are being spent. Trust me I work there

Tom May 10, 2012 at 06:37 pm

I would like to know more about the position. How many hours a day is he expected to work? Does he work throughout the year? What is he expected to do during those hours? The article said, "Torres works as a baseball and physical fitness trainer with children at many public and private organizations on Long Island, police said." If the holder of the position has that much time, how much time is he spending earning his $83,000 per year?

Joseph May 10, 2012 at 07:10 pm

Erica, With the little information provided, how can you possibly make the determination that his salary isn't unreasonable? Would you pay him $83k per year out of your own pocket without asking how much time and work he would provide? Do you pay your landscaper a fee to cut your grass without asking how often he is going to cut it? Would you pay the same price for once a week lawn cutting that you would for once a month lawn cutting. I too like the parks and programs but that doesnt mean that I want to overpay for those services. "Torres conducted clinics and provided instruction on the fundamentals of baseball and used a town-owned van to travel to the clinics". How many clinics per year did he conduct? How many hours per week of instruction did he provide? If he conducted two clinics per year for 12 years, is $83k still reasonable? If he worked 40 hours per week, 50 weeks a year (lets be fair and give him 2 weeks vacation) then one could argue that $83k is reasonable (and he would still make more than a gym teacher in a school).

Dale from Farmingdale May 10, 2012 at 08:49 pm

LOL...in an otherwise tragic situation.

bobby May 10, 2012 at 08:53 pm

tom check out seethroughny.com tob salary you be sickened to see what some of these people with dirty political connections make

Tom May 10, 2012 at 09:00 pm

I checked it out but it wasn't clear to me why i was supposed to be sickened. Or is it that anyone making a decent amount of money to live in TOB sickens you?

Cathy May 10, 2012 at 09:19 pm

Having nothing at all to do with the charges & only his salary. As a 63 year old who is a full time employee for 15 years i think they said, no 83,000 is not alot of money. With many years of service & living in New York i think thats an average salary also given the expertise. Let me reiterate, this is NOTHING to do with the allegations

Joe Dowd (Editor) May 10, 2012 at 09:34 pm

Concerned Citizen: There are not. We've checked. He has been in this role, specific to coaching baseball, for 10 years now. See our updated story in about an hour. jd

Joe Dowd (Editor) May 10, 2012 at 09:35 pm

Erika: He has held the position since May 2002. Ten years. We've double checked with the town. See our updated story shortly.

Helen May 11, 2012 at 01:14 am

Agreeing with (most of) the above - and wondering what school jobs are filed under the "miscellaneous" millions line item in the school budget. Guess this has opened a can o'worms for TOBAY...in more way than one. Any way you wash it, it's still dirty politics - not enough soap in the world....

Cosmo May 11, 2012 at 06:48 pm

Lets remember innocent until proven guilty. My problem is why is the town paying him $83,000 to be a coach. Are there any former Islanders on the town payroll? How about former Jets? There are hundreds of volunteer coaches in the community they all put in time and hard work. Let justice play out, if the charges are true, let him rot in jail. I also think an audit of the towns books are in order.

JoeM May 15, 2012 at 11:35 pm

An attempt at deflection from the can of worms this has opened up about Town employees and salaries.

JoeM May 15, 2012 at 11:37 pm

The lets see the time sheets. $40/hour is a bit high for a kids coach.

JoeM May 15, 2012 at 11:38 pm

Chickens have come home to roost. Can't put the toothpaste back in the tube now. Time to find out what is going on at Town Hall.

gene hendrickson May 16, 2012 at 07:36 pm

I did not play in the bigs. Played semi pro for four yrs till my leg decided to break. Taught high school ball for 4 yrs. Made 7200 total for those yrs. Was a great experiance. I did have a real job teaching jr. high. Didn't make big money at that either. What a great life!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I think this guy was over paid???