Former New York Yankees pitcher David Wells recently seemed to criticize the perceived “buddy-buddy” relationships that current Yankees manager Aaron Boone maintains with his players.
Wells reminisced about how Joe Torre, a legendary manager, handled the team’s stars during their most recent dominant era.
During a Thursday morning appearance on New York sports radio station WFAN, Torre discussed Boone’s management style following the Yankees’ 12-3 home loss to the New York Mets on Wednesday night.
“You don’t know what happens behind closed doors,” Torre said, as reported by Ryan Chichester of Audacy. “You may be sitting there thinking, ‘You have to do something about this guy,’ but you don’t know if he has done something. ‘Boonie’ doesn’t miss anything. He understands what’s necessary to get the effort on the field regularly, not just to win.”
Boone has become a target for disgruntled Yankees fans during the team’s ongoing slump, which has extended past the All-Star break. The Yankees started the second half of the season with a promising 6-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays but subsequently lost four out of five home games before a crucial series against the Boston Red Sox (54-47).
Some fans are urging Boone to adopt a more assertive approach after the poor performance on Wednesday night. Torre emphasized the importance of a manager knowing how to engage with different players effectively.
“They’re not all the same, so you can’t really treat them all the same,” Torre continued. “You have to treat them all fairly.”
Despite the unrest among fans, Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner has shown no signs of considering Boone’s dismissal this summer. The team, which was 50-22 on June 15, began Thursday with a 60-44 record, trailing the first-place Baltimore Orioles (60-41) by one-and-a-half games in the American League East standings. Torre acknowledged the frustration among fans following the Mets’ four-game season sweep of the Yankees.
“You have to gain perspective by remembering that it’s 162 games,” Torre added. “Losing to the crosstown rivals is embarrassing, especially for the Yankees.”
Speculation remains whether Steinbrenner might reconsider Boone’s position if the Yankees suffer additional losses in Boston this weekend.
