Aaron Boone tries to hide behind PitchCom only to get exposed

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Yankees manager Aaron Boone’s habit of defending his players despite their mistakes forced him to eschew his words on Friday. During the game against Boston, Jhony Brito and Ben Rortvedt faced communication challenges throwing the Yankees under the bus. However, Aaron Boone once again stepped in to support his players, questioning the unavailability of the PitchCom system and then going in the opposite direction only to be exposed.

However, the defense only exposed Aaron Boone and his team further. Its clearly showcased that how the Yankees have given up human baseball skills in their quest to turn mechanical and they are now paying for it.

No PitchCom in Yankees vs. Red Sox game

Just before the start of the game on Friday evening, the Yankees received word that the Red Sox were encountering difficulties with their PitchCom system. A notification was made that both teams would be unable to utilize the pitch-calling devices until the issue was addressed.

Initially, Aaron Boone appeared to be questioning the decisions and blaming it for the Yankees rout. He acknowledged the timing as intriguing and expressed that it wasn’t an ideal circumstance, especially right before the opening pitch. He highlighted that effective coordination was missing between Brito and catcher Ben Rortvedt following the unexpected challenge.

“Interesting timing right there, and not an ideal situation, obviously, right before you’re getting ready to throw the first pitch,” Aaron Boone was quoted saying. “It’s certainly not something you’re expecting right out of the shoot.”

The U-turn by Yankees manager Aaron Boone

However, later, Aaron Boone Aaron Boone declined to attribute the subsequent events to the last-minute alteration and emphasized that it boiled down to pitch “execution.” When asked if he thought the Red Sox deliberately caused the delay, Aaron Boone said he didn’t think so. The Yankees manager mentioned that technicians were working to resolve the problem, which led him to believe it wasn’t a deliberate move. He also expressed confidence that precautions were taken to avoid such issues.

The Red Sox managed to secure seven runs in the initial two innings, that ultimately contributed to their clinching of an 8-3 win. Aaron Boone also mentioned that the teams were notified after the second inning that the technology wouldn’t be in use for the rest of the game. Despite this, the 25-year-old Brito gave up four runs within the initial four batters of the game. This included a three-run home run by cleanup batter Masataka Yoshida, who connected with a changeup that was placed over the middle of the plate.

In his previous appearance, Yankees starter Brito had delivered a solid performance, allowing only one run over the course of five innings in a 3-1 defeat against Miami last Saturday. However, the young 25-year-old pitcher struggled further in the second frame on Friday, conceding three additional runs. Rafael Devers, Justin Turner, and Yoshida each contributed with RBI singles during that inning. Subsequently, Ian Hamilton took over for Brito as the Yankees found themselves trailing 7-0 after Reese McGuire’s double in the third inning.

Brito mentioned that he didn’t view it as a problem with the PitchCom. He believed that the main issue was the execution of his pitches during the game. He explained that the Red Sox hitters were prepared to swing, particularly against his changeup. The Yankees’ rookie starter expressed that his changeup was consistently elevated in the strike zone throughout the night, which allowed the Red Sox batters to make contact effectively at Yankee Stadium.

It’s clear that PitchCom is widely used these days, but catchers and pitchers have been accustomed to managing things the traditional way throughout their entire careers. But it seems that the Yankees were not trained to do without it.

However, Rortvedt’s post-game remarks were in contrast to both Aaron Boone and Brito. He explained that catchers have become accustomed to using PitchCom technology over the past couple of years, rarely needing to signal pitches with their fingers. However, due to the unexpected switch, they had to quickly adjust their approach. The notice about the change only came during warm-ups, leading Rortvedt to discuss the altered strategy with Brito before the game. Despite having a solid game plan in place, the disruption obstructed the flow of communication, he admitted.

“But I didn’t think much of it,” he added. “It was just kind of weird so close to first pitch and we had to totally change our game plan. It was just such late notice.”

The Yankees catcher also acknowledged that the timing of the change was definitely unexpected. The sudden, strange decision right before the game forced them to quickly change their approach, which was clearly absent.

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