Aaron Boone doesn’t envy Dave Roberts on making the decision to pull Clayton Kershaw while he was six outs away from a perfect game, but he understands the logic given all the variables involved.
“It’s impossible to know everything involved,” Boone told Sweeny Murti before Wednesday’s game against the Blue Jays. “Every case is a little bit different. It’s a tough call.”
Boone has had hit starters on a tight leash given the shortened spring training as a result of the lockout. Through the first three games of the season, Yankee starters went just 10.2 innings, though if they were pitching as efficiently as Kershaw, it likely would have been a bit more. But Kershaw’s recent injury history includes a forearm issue last October, elbow inflammation last August, and a third IL stint in July for a back issue that he also experienced a year earlier.
“Without all the particulars, which I’m sure we can’t possibly know, it’s hard to make a call either way,” Boone said. “I know Doc well, I know it’s not something he does lightly.”
Fans on social media weren’t as understanding, blasting Roberts and the state of baseball as a whole for being robbed of a chance to see history by a generational pitcher. But managers have the tougher decision to make when looking at the bigger picture, especially when it comes to an aging starter fresh off of a number of injuries in his season debut.
“I get it, but we’re talking about a guy that’s coming off an injury, has been built up slowly, is at an age and is obviously a key figure in a team that hopes to compete for a championship,” Boone said. “Were they past a place they were already comfortable, knowing they were up against it? It’s impossible to know all that was baked into it. But I get the interest in it.”
Follow Ryan Chichester on Twitter: @ryanchichester1
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