Aaron Boone didn’t have to wait long for his first ejection of the 2024 season. The Yankees manager got tossed from Wednesday night’s game against the Marlins in the bottom of the 7th inning after disagreeing with a called strike.
For the fan record, Aaron Boone had his first ejection last season on April 12, 2023, and it was the Yankees’ 12th MLB game of that season. In 2024, it came in game no. 13.
With the Yankees trailing 4-1, batter Alex Verdugo took a slider that looked outside and low. But home plate umpire John Bacon called it a strike, prompting an animated argument from Aaron Boone in the dugout. Bacon had seen and heard enough from the fired-up manager and ejected him from the game.
The incident seemed to spark the Yankees’ offense as they rallied to load the bases in the 9th inning. But they couldn’t complete the comeback, stranding the tying run as they fell 5-2 to Miami.
Aaron Boone’s early ejection showed his passion and willingness to stick up for his players, even if the umpire didn’t agree with his take on the borderline pitch. While the Yankees came up short, their manager’s fiery display aimed to light a fire under his club.
Aaron Boone is surprised at his ejection
Aaron Boone responded, when questioned about his surprise regarding the ejection following the Yankees’ third loss of the season, that he was indeed somewhat surprised. He also added that it felt quick.
“A little bit,” the Yankees skipper said. “Yeah, [it] felt quick.”
He thought that the decision wasn’t triggered by any specific word or phrase. The Yankees manager remarked that he didn’t think so and added that it felt a little quick, once more.
“I don’t think so,” Aaron Boone said. “Felt a little quick, again.”
Before going to the clubhouse, the manager stepped out to share his thoughts on the call that shifted the count to 1-2, resulting in Verdugo striking out for the second time in the game.
The Bronx crowd expressed their disapproval with boos echoing through the Stadium. Alex Verdugo also engaged in a heated exchange with Bacon during the bottom of the fourth inning.
Regarding the third-strike call, the outfielder remained for a brief period to dispute with Bacon, showing clear signs of frustration. Aaron Boone remarked about Verdugo, emphasizing the need to maintain focus despite the challenges faced during the game. He reflected on the previous night, where Verdugo had gone 0-for-4 after hitting his first home run as a Yankee in The Bronx. Aaron Boone shared his opinion that overall, the game was well-officiated, but noted instances where calls seemed to unfavorably affect Verdugo in critical moments. He acknowledged that such occurrences are inevitable from time to time and advised to stay focused to the best of one’s ability.
“You gotta stay locked in there. It was a tough night against him,” he said of Verdugo. “I thought it was a pretty good, well-called game, but Verdugo had some, I thought, ones that obviously went against him pretty bad in some key spots. It’s gonna happen every now and then. You just go to lock in as best you can.”
Aaron Boone is quite familiar with getting ejected from games during his seven-year tenure with the Yankees. Last season, he led the American League with seven ejections and has totaled 33 ejections throughout his managerial career.
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