Yankees broadcaster Michael Kay voiced strong criticism of manager Aaron Boone’s late-game decision-making following back-to-back losses to the Nationals.
“Now there’s nobody, although I think he does not believe it … there’s nobody on the New York airwaves that defends Aaron Boone more than I do, but yesterday, head-scratchingly unacceptable,” an angry Kay thundered on his The Michael Kay Show.
In the first of the two defeats, Boone allowed DJ LeMahieu to bat against Nationals right-handed closer Kyle Finnegan in the ninth inning, despite the possibility of using a left-handed pinch-hitter. LeMahieu’s at-bat ended with a foul pop-out along the right-field line dashing all hopes of the the Yankees manager.
When asked about his decision, Boone defended keeping LeMahieu in the game, citing Finnegan’s strong track record against left-handed hitters. The Yankees skipper’s faith in LeMahieu extended to the following game, where LeMahieu remained in the starting lineup.
However, faced with a similar situation against Finnegan in the next game, Boone opted for a different approach, substituting LeMahieu with Oswaldo Cabrera. Cabrera’s pinch-hit appearance resulted in a flyout to center field giving the Yankees some relief.
Kay, speaking on his ESPN Radio show, expressed confusion over Boone’s inconsistent tactics. He questioned the Yankees manager’s recognition of LeMahieu’s struggles in recent months, pointing out the apparent contradiction in Boone’s decisions. Kay highlighted that the Yankees boss had previously emphasized Finnegan’s effectiveness against left-handed hitters yet chose to pinch-hit with Cabrera the second time around after sticking with LeMahieu the first night.
“[Boone] hasn’t learned from the previous three months that DJ is not the same player that he used to be? And so that now you send up Cabrera, who hit a blistering line drive into center field that was caught, but it doesn’t make sense,” the long-time Yankees booth legend warned. “The guy on the mound still is death on reverse splits. That’s his words, not mine. And then you send up Cabrera yesterday, but you didn’t send him up the day before.”
Kay rips Yankees for offensive meltdown
The Yankees’ offensive woes continued in their recent series against the Nationals, where they lost two of three games. A key issue was their dismal performance with runners in scoring position, managing just one hit in 26 attempts during the series.
On his radio show, Michael Kay voiced frustration over the Yankees’ inability to capitalize on scoring chances. He singled out the team’s struggles against left-handed pitchers, highlighting strong outings by MacKenzie Gore and Patrick Corbin. While Kay acknowledged manager Aaron Boone’s point about creating baserunners, he emphasized that failing to convert those opportunities into runs was the real problem.
Kay, usually one of Boone’s more vocal supporters in the media, found the manager’s recent strategic decisions hard to defend. He described the Yankees manager’s choices as both confusing and unacceptable, reflecting broader concerns about the team’s performance.
“You can’t go into D.C. and lose two out of three,” he said. “You can’t just not let any hits with runners in scoring position. And once again, two games — yesterday MacKenzie Gore, the day before, Patrick Corbin — left handers shut them down. Shut them down. I know what Aaron Boone said: ‘Well, there’s a lot of traffic.’ OK, there’s a lot of traffic, but you’re not scoring. You’re not getting the big hit. Left handers are stopping you.”
Kay’s critique comes amid LeMahieu’s ongoing slump at the plate. He is batting .200 across 65 games this season, with a .523 OPS—among the lowest for players with substantial plate appearances. His struggles are especially evident against left-handed pitching, where he’s hitting just .149 with a .422 OPS. This figure ranks among the poorest for hitters facing lefties this season.
While Kay expressed empathy for Boone’s predicament, acknowledging the Yankees manager’s limited options with LeMahieu on the roster, he questioned the decision to rely on him in critical late-game situations. Kay argued that the Yankees should be making moves to secure victories, rather than sticking with a struggling player in pivotal moments.
What do you think? Leave your comment below.
He should have been DFA’d 2 months ago. He’s DONE
is there a manager they could elevate to replace the bubble gum chewing fool!
I have said this since Day 1 and most everybody said Yankees have the best team. I constantly said Nobody fears this team. They needed a top notch starter, at least 2 veteran relievers, a 1st, 2nd and leftfielder..I hated the Verdugo pickup and was and still not a fan of Volpe. He needed time in AAA. This team is filled with misfits and in total disarray
First of all Boone , Torres , that so call closer , verdugo, are bums and I said from day one we never going to win 🏆 never especially with Boone there he’s gross 🤮 and he let go the real closer flame 🔥 thrower u know who hurst won a ship with Texas they are not winning not even a playoff game feel bad for Soto and especially judge my son invited me to a game and I said no cause shitt really frustrates me they could had run away with in may can’t make this up 🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🐖🦨🐖🦨get Boone out of the Bronx soon as possible
Put DJ on the IL because something has to be wrong with him. Also I believe Cashman influences the lineups.
maybe the answer is boone, i cant see how hes going to last another year, volpe needs to sit a couple of games, he strikes out too much
boone plays favorites
It is mind boggling how this team consistently fails to score runs with men on base. Where is the aggressive hitting in this lineup. No one bunts anymore. Put the ball in play. Long ball is great coupled with small ball. Judge and Soto cant do it all. And then there’s the relief pitching. You’ll never win a pennant with this kind of pitching. Falling behind hitters leads to disaster. The series with the Cardinals was a total nightmare. You scratch your way back into the game and your pitching collapses and you get blown out. It’s potential that’s never realized. That’s what I see!