Aaron Hicks got his first start of the season on Monday night, going hitless in three at-bats with a walk and a strikeout in an 8-1 win over the Phillies.
The start came one day after Hicks voiced his frustrations with his current role on the team, as he had just one at-bat in three games before Monday’s start.
Asked about Hicks before Monday’s series opener in the Bronx, manager Aaron Boone echoed his usual sentiment when it comes to the struggling outfielder.
“The role can evolve and change, and every opportunity and, from my standpoint, trying to put him in positions where I feel like he can impact us and be the most successful,” Boone said. “So try and communicate ahead of time that he's in there or he's not, things like that, but I don't want to also tell him, 'You're in a reserve role here or you're the starter,' because that's not the reality.
“The reality is our roster continues to evolve and change a little bit and we'll eventually get Harrison [Bader] back and you lose a guy here and a role changes like that. So I try and communicate ahead of time as much as I can with what I'm thinking and that's the role right now is just be ready to go.”
Hicks lost the starting left field job to Oswaldo Cabrera to start the season, and once Bader returns from the IL, opportunities for playing time will decrease even more, likely leading to more frustration from Hicks about his role. But all Boone can do is openly communicate what that role is on a day to day basis.
“We've had our conversations,” Boone said. “The last few weeks of spring training, I feel like he was doing a lot of really good things on both sides of the ball. So bottom line is…continue to play like I know that he's capable of and you earn more and more opportunities. But there are competition for those things right now.”
Follow Ryan Chichester on Twitter: @ryanchichester1
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