Yankees leaking Aaron Boone decision immediately after Game 5 collapse says it all

”We'll see. I don't know.”

World Series - Los Angeles Dodgers v New York Yankees - Game 5
World Series - Los Angeles Dodgers v New York Yankees - Game 5 / Alex Slitz/GettyImages

After his Yankees were embarrassed by poor managerial decisions and a comedy of errors in the 2024 World Series, it looks like Aaron Boone will be back at the helm again in 2025.

According to SNY MLB Insider Andy Martino’s reporting only minutes after the Dodgers won, “Boone is expected back as manager in 2025, despite how the World Series went, according to multiple sources with direct knowledge of the team’s thinking. That would have been the case even if the Yankees had been swept.”

The Yankees hold an option on Boone for next season, believed to be for $3 million plus.

Assuming they exercise that, and given comments that they don’t blame him for the Game 1 loss, is it only logical to assume GM Brian Cashman will follow an American League pennant winning season with a contract extension to avoid a lame duck situation?

Will Yankees extend Aaron Boone quickly to avoid lame duck 2025 season? Probably.

When asked about his contract status after the loss Wednesday, Boone answered: “We'll see. I don't know." But reading the tea leaves suggests he’ll be back. Given Cashman is signed through the 2026 season, it’s likely his manager will be given a two-year contract through 2026 … at a minimum. Potential free agents will obviously want to know who their manager will be before signing, so expect that decision to be made relatively quickly.

Boone has 603 wins and a .584 winning percentage in the regular season in his seven seasons as Yankees manager, including three AL East titles and the 2024 American League pennant. But his postseason record is 22-23 (.489), including two ALCS losses to the Houston Astros in 2019 and 2022, as well as the World Series loss this year. He’s managed the Yankees to an 11-11 home record in the playoffs.

But questions about his managing - and the consistently poor fundamental baseball played by his teams - will persist. He’s been ripped by scouts for his poor decisions in the World Series, and that will hang over this offseason like the Fat Joe curse. We recently suggested that it’s time to end his managerial tenure after six years of being out managed in the postseason. Oh well.

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