Aaron Boone has been subject to much criticism over many of his in-game decisions, particularly his bullpen use, over the past week and the New York Yankees manager admitted that there is at least one he seems to regret.
The Yankees manager was asked by the ‘Talkin’ Yanks’ podcast on Tuesday to defend, regret and debate three of his bullpen moves and revealed that taking Ron Marinaccio out in the ninth inning of a tied game against the Guardians for Clay Holmes is probably the one he’d want back.
“Ron that day, we went in as kinda [he’ll pitch] an inning,” Boone explained. “He ends up going two ups and that would have been his fifth out. I was comfortable leaving him in there but also past what we decided what we were going to get from him. I already went over with him.”
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Holmes had blown the save two nights earlier and Boone admitted there was a part of him that wanted to get Holmes in a favorable matchup.
“I got to [Myles] Straw with two outs at the bottom and I felt like with Clay, let’s get him in now in a matchup that’s really good, even back-to-back matchups,” he said. “Even though I feel like Clay’s throwing the ball well, come in let’s get this righty out to end this inning and then I know I got him and I preserve Ron from [going] a little further than what I wanted him to go already.”
Of course, Straw doubled off Holmes on a bloop that Isiah Kiner-Falefa, playing left field, could not get to and then pinch-hitter Oscar Gonzalez hit a bloop that also fell in front of IKF and a diving Harrison Bader to give the Guardians the lead.
Boone was bailed out, though, as the Yankees tied it in the bottom of the ninth then won in extras, but if Boone had to do it again, he would probably just left Marinaccio in.
“It’s obviously not a good inning,” Boone continued. “That one [I] probably would have played it more straight instead and have Ron finish the inning and have Clay here to start the next inning.”
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