LOS ANGELES -- A day after he was fired as manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers, Davey Johnson said he had no animosity toward the organization and was uncertain about his future.

However, when asked about Dodgers general manager Kevin Malone, Johnson replied, "I have no comment."

The Malone-Johnson relationship was strained through most of Johnson's two years as manager of the Dodgers. At Friday's news conference called to announce Johnson's dismissal, team chairman Bob Daly acknowledged that was a factor in the firing.

Malone apologized for the problems he caused, among them being openly critical of Johnson.

"I'm relaxing in my retirement," Johnson said Saturday from his offseason home in Winter Park, Fla. "I'm a little sad. There's some unfinished business there. I thought we accomplished a lot. Obviously we didn't accomplish enough. I have no hard feelings."

When asked if he might be a considered a scapegoat, Johnson replied: "When you don't win, usually the manager gets fired." The Dodgers were 86-76 and finished second in the NL West this season after going 77-85 in 1999, Johnson's first year as manager.

The Dodgers, whose $94.2 million payroll was the third-highest in baseball this season, haven't made the playoffs since 1996, and haven't won a postseason game since the 1988 World Series.

The 57-year-old Johnson is under contract for next year at a salary of $1.5 million. His teams have a 1,148-888 record, finishing first or second in 11 of his 12 full seasons.

"I loved being in Vero Beach (where the Dodgers hold spring training), I loved being in Chavez Ravine, in the Dodgers uniform," Johnson said. "They were my team growing up."

When asked about the workings of the front office, Johnson replied, "I'm no longer there."

About managing again, he said: "I'm not even going to go there. It's too soon for me to think about my future. When you're no longer there, you need to catch your breath, clear your head a little bit. You never make big decisions until you get away a little bit."

Daly said Friday the search to find Johnson's successor will begin next week, and that the Dodgers did not yet have a list of candidates.

"They've got a lot of guys who would probably like to manage in the system now," said Johnson, mentioning coaches Rick Dempsey, Rick Down, Glenn Hoffman and Jim Tracy.

Hoffman, 42, managed the Dodgers to a 47-41 record in 1998 after Bill Russell was fired. Hoffman was told following the season he wouldn't return as manager, and Johnson was hired three weeks later. Hoffman was a coach under Johnson the last two years.

"I don't know if they're going to go in-house," Johnson said.

The new manager is will be the Dodgers' fourth since Tom Lasorda stepped down during the 1996 season after having a heart attack.

The 73-year-old Lasorda, now a senior vice president for the Dodgers, managed the U.S. Olympic baseball team to the gold medal in Australia last month.

Lasorda managed the Dodgers for nearly 20 years after Walter Alston held the job for 23 years. Both are in the Hall of Fame.