Yankees Aaron Boone: Let Sonny Gray be Sonny Gray!

NEW YORK, NY - APRIL 20: Sonny Gray
NEW YORK, NY - APRIL 20: Sonny Gray

With the season more than 10 percent over, Yankees manager, Aaron Boone, is finally starting to get the house in order. Now it’s time to understand his starting pitchers and whom they work best with.

Aaron Boone has got the Yankees offense rolling and is finally understanding how to control the clubs bullpen. Now, he must also learn to manage his starters and not try to fix a valuable asset what was never broken in Sonny Gray

Gray began the season looking great in Toronto, going four innings, allowing one-run and striking out eight. Gray threw just 89 pitches before Boone pulled him. On that day, Austin Romine was his battery-mate.

In his next outing, Gray picked up his first win of the season, tossing six innings vs. the Orioles, allowing three runs, fanning four and walking only two men in just 86 pitches. Again, his battery-mate was the backup catcher, Romine.

Gray’s third time on the hill for the Yankees was in Boston. Unfortunately, Sonny lasted just three innings and 68 pitches, allowing seven hits and six runs. Calling pitches that day was Gary Sanchez.

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During his most recent start against those same Blue Jays, Gray was an entirely different pitcher, and not in a good way.

This time, Boone was forced to yank him after just 3.1 innings and 73 pitches because Gray was off-kilter, as he allowed five hits, five runs, recorded zero strikeouts and walked four. Gary Sanchez was once again calling the pitches and Gray was visibly frustrated, shaking off one sign after another.

Now I could be mistaken, but maybe there is still something wrong in Aaron Boone’s burgeoning paradise. The results tend to show that the problem may not be Gray, rather Gary Sanchez’s understanding of what Gray’s best game should be called like.

The 2015 AL All-Star with the A’s, Gray came to the Yankees with a career sub 3.50 ERA. In his 11 appearances with the club dating back to last season, Sonny has managed a 3.72 ERA and 1.25 WHIP.

One would think Gray still knows how to pitch, especially when it comes to understanding his strengths and weaknesses.

Baseball is about winning. Managing a winning ball club is all about knowing when and where to use the players you have, and how to get the best production out of them in combination with others.

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Let’s hope that Aaron Boone will give Sonny Gray a chance to be who he is as Austin Romine is set to be on the receiving end vs. the Twins on Wednesday night. Gary Sanchez gets a bit of a rest, batting in the five-hole as the DH.

We shall see what happens.

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