Aaron Boone looked like a seasoned veteran manager as he fielded questions in his first press conference as the manager of the New York Yankees at George M Steinbrenner Field on Tuesday.
The first day of a new job can not only be overwhelming but also unnerving for anyone in a new line of work. Overwhelmed and unnerved, however, is basically the opposite of Aaron Boone’s demeanor while giving his first “State of the Yankees” address yesterday afternoon at the New York Yankees Spring Training facilities in Tampa.
Boone began by saying that it was a “surreal” feeling walking through the clubhouse and into his office for the first time. But Boone was quick to move beyond the starry-eyed portion of his day and acknowledged the high expectations laid out before him and his ball club. He went on to add that he and his players weren’t going to “back down” from any challenge, but rather live and play by an embrace the hype mantra.
Aaron Boone said that part of his message to players will be to “embrace expectations,” and “expect to go out and be great.”
“It beats the alternative… we are not going to run from hype.” #Yankees
— Bryan Hoch (@BryanHoch) February 13, 2018
The new skipper was confident and collected as he fielded a variety of questions, including how much was he looking forward to watching and working with the likes of 2017 AL Rookie of the Year Aaron Judge and newly acquired 2017 NL MVP Giancarlo Stanton. Boone offered this response, via MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch.
.@AaronBoone’s scouting report on @TheJudge44 & @Giancarlo818:
“Tremendous players. Really good defenders. Both guys, you talk about quality individuals. You can tell that it's about winning for them. It's about trying to chase down that championship for them."
— Bryan Hoch (@BryanHoch) February 13, 2018
Boone said that it was very “easy” to jump right into the championship mentality and winning machine that is the New York Yankees, adding that he felt even more so comfortable knowing that Yanks pitching coach Larry Rothschild would be his right-hand man. He added that Rothschild had already been by his office multiple times before the presser and that he feels the most important part of those meetings is listening rather than doing much talking.
Boone closed by saying that he has one specific goal in mind when it comes to the 2018 season.
What’s @AaronBoone’s biggest goal for 2018?
“Win the last game.” pic.twitter.com/F24ujNwpiF
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) February 13, 2018
I have to admit I was not impressed when the Yankees initially announced Boone’s hiring; but the more I see him in uniform and listen to his ideas for the future of the greatest franchise in the history of sports, he is definitely nudging me to push all of my chips in.
Locker Room Talk
One of the things that Boone did not speak about was locker assignments for his players. And while that doesn’t appear to be part of his job description, whoever is in charge of that task certainly knew what he was doing when he assigned “His Excellency’s” new locker.
.@TheJudge44 gets the corner locker near the batting cage at #Yankees camp. Previously @AROD’s.
— Bryan Hoch (@BryanHoch) February 13, 2018
I’m not sure if it’s a good sign that they are giving it to the most recent Yankee to win an MVP or if they’re trying to reverse the fortunes of that real estate by putting someone of the polar-opposite strength of character than the previous owner. Either way, closest to the batting cage…nothing but the best when it comes to accessibility for Judge Dredd.
The Freak In The Bronx?
While the Yankees have been linked to nearly every starting pitcher on the market at one point or another in the offseason, one name nobody’s really talked about is two-time National League Cy Young Award winner Tim Lincecum.
The 33-year-old righty has battled injuries and inconsistency over the past five years, pitching to a combined 41-48 record with a 4.94 ERA and 1.46 WHIP since 2012. But Lincecum isn’t ready to hang up his spikes just yet, as he’ll be holding a showcase for teams on Thursday at the Driveline Research Lab in Kent, WA.
And according to FanRag Sports’ Jon Heyman, the Yankees will be in attendance.
sources: the yankees will attend tim lincecum's showcase. he does seem to like the big stage.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) February 13, 2018
While it’d be insane to expect to see the Lincecum of old toeing the rubber, Yahoo Sports’ Jeff Passan tweeted in December that Lincecum was not only healthy but in great shape and throwing hard again. At the very least, he could be an intriguing, low-risk, high-reward addition to the Yanks’ non-roster invitees to spring training.
That’s all for now from the Boogie Down, but do stay tuned right here at Elite Sports NY for any and all of your need-to-know Yankees news and updates.
