Yankees: Aaron Boone isn’t fully convinced the Astros didn’t use buzzers during the 2019 ALCS

Yankees manager Aaron Boone held his first press conference of Spring Training on Wednesday where he addressed a variety of topics including the Astros sign-stealing scandal. One of the questions Boone was asked was whether or not he was convinced if Houston didn’t use buzzers during last year’s ALCS.

Over the last couple of weeks, we’ve heard multiple Yankees express their disappointment about the Astros cheating. Wednesday morning we got to hear Gary Sanchez chime in and he gave one of the best quotes you’ll see all spring. A couple of hours later we finally got to hear Aaron Boone give his thoughts.

Boone also talked about the upcoming season and his plans for the team throughout camp, but everyone’s focus, of course, was on the Astros. We know that they cheated their way to a championship in 2017, but there are many who believe the sign-stealing continued past that, specifically during the 2019 ALCS against the Yankees.

Unlike Gio Urshela, Boone wouldn’t go as far as to say that Jose Altuve probably had a buzzer underneath his jersey when he hit the walk-off home run against Aroldis Chapman to advance to the World Series. That being said, he’s certainly not fully convinced that he didn’t.

I think a lot of fans and Yankee players feel the same way as Boone does about the possibility of buzzers being used and rightfully so? After the punishment was handed down the Astros have lost all credibility and any benefit of the doubt so it’s hard to really believe anything they say regardless of what the commissioner’s report may have revealed.

The Altuve video is extremely fishy anyway you look at it and AJ Hinch only added more fuel to the fire on Friday when he didn’t deny that buzzers were being used in his first public interview since losing his job.

In addition to being asked questions about the buzzers, Boone was asked about his respect level for Hinch and Alex Cora, who have both been close friends of his over the years. After a long pause, the Yankees skipper had this to say…

"“Look, those are still guys I consider friends. I’ve struggled, like I’m sure a lot of people have, with making sense of it all and trying to wrestle with my emotions and in a way get some clarity. I don’t think you ever totally get there and that’s OK. I think as human beings, we all fall down, we all fall short. None of us are perfect. Hopefully, I treat people with the grace that would reflect that but it’s been a little bit of a struggle for me in how I make sense of it.”"

More from Yankees News

• Yankees chose worst possible player to ring in New Year on 2023 team calendar
• Yankees make upside play, sign former Rangers top prospect outfielder
• Michael Kay’s Anthony Volpe story will get Yankees fans amped for Opening Day
• No, Yankees should not acquire Trevor Bauer for 2023
• Yankees’ Marwin González replaces Red Sox LF in Japan in logical next step

That had to be a very difficult question for Boone to answer but his response was exactly what you’d expect from someone as classy as he is. Boone was then asked if he’s talked to Hinch since the punishment was handed down. He said they texted with each other but he hasn’t spoken to him and that he’s not ready to get there yet.

As much as Boone and the rest of the Yankees are upset with the Astros they’re also all ready to move on and focus on preparing for the season. The coverage surrounding the scandal is far from over and in the coming days more Yankees will speak out and express their thoughts, but what happened happened and there’s no going back to change history.

The best way for the Yankees to get their revenge against Houston is by winning a championship this October and they have all the pieces in place to make that happen. They’ll never get over or forget what the Astros have done but at some point, everyone has to stop dwelling on the past and this Yankee team is ready to do that.