New York Yankees fans hoping that team owner Hal Steinbrenner will move on from manager Aaron Boone at any point this year won’t like the latest update on the situation.
MLB insider Andy Martino of SNY noted Friday that “Boone’s job is safe” because Yankees senior vice president and general manager Brian Cashman “still considers Boone an excellent manager and is said not to blame him for the team’s recent struggles.”
The Yankees lost five of six road games following the All-Star break to fall to 50-47 in what’s quickly becoming a disappointing season for the big-spending club. New York began Friday sitting in dead last in the American League East standings and trailing the first-place Baltimore Orioles by nine-and-a-half games. The Bronx Bombers were also four games back of a wild-card playoff berth heading into Friday’s MLB action.
“It is extremely difficult to imagine the front office wanting to move on from Boone after the season, even if the Yankees fail to reach the postseason,” Martino continued. Martino acknowledged, though, that it’s “unknown” how the previously mentioned Steinbrenner would react to the Yankees missing the playoffs for the first time since Boone took over as skipper following the 2017 campaign.
Boone inked a three-year contract that includes a club option for 2025 back in October 2021 and received a public vote of confidence from Steinbrenner last fall shortly after the Yankees were swept by the Houston Astros in the AL Championship Series. This past spring, Steinbrenner indicated he wouldn’t fire Boone anytime soon as long as the players “want to play for him” and “want to win for him.”
One thing Boone can do nothing about is the fact that team captain Aaron Judge hasn’t been in the lineup since he suffered an injury to his big right toe during a game on June 3. Since the morning of June 4, the Yankees have gone 15-22.
Judge said Friday he is “getting close” to returning but couldn’t confirm if he’s days or weeks away from facing big-league opposition.
