Boone's 'focus' is being with Yankees next season
Written by I Dig SportsDespite a contract that runs through 2024, with a club option for 2025, New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Monday that he does not know if he will be invited back for next season.
The Yankees were a disappointing 78-77 heading into Monday afternoon's game against the Arizona Diamondbacks and were eliminated from playoff contention Sunday. The .503 winning percentage is not only the worst of Boone's six-year tenure, it is the club's worst since a .469 mark in 1992.
"No, I don't worry about it," Boone told reporters Monday when asked about his job security. "It's out of my hands. I'm completely comfortable with who I am and the things I can control."
Reports have indicated that general manager Brian Cashman does not intend to fire Boone so any change in that area would come from the top. Boone is acting like he will return, looking for ways to improve in the near future.
"My job is, in my mind, doing everything to head into the offseason to prepare to put us in a better position to try and compete for a championship," Boone said. "That's what the goal is, and until they take that away, that's my focus."
Before 2023, the Yankees advanced to the playoffs every year under Boone, making their way into the American League Championship Series last season where they were swept. The Yankees advanced to the ALCS three times since 2017, with two of those under Boone.
Boone was asked his assessment of how the team operated under his guidance this season.
"I think that will be part of the conversations we have organizationally," he said. "I'll step back and evaluate where I want to keep pushing forward on certain things and where you want to make adjustments. Hopefully, those align with us being in a better place."
This season will be New York's first without a playoff game since 2016.
Over the weekend, Yankees captain and outfielder Aaron Judge said he plans to take a vocal and proactive role this offseason in ensuring the organization trends back to where it was before this season.
"It's not going to happen overnight," Judge said. "So we got to hit the ground running, especially when the season ends. We've got a lot to work on, a lot of things to change and a lot of stuff going on around here that needs to be fixed."
Information from Reuters was used in this report.