aaron boone

The Super Bowl has come and gone. Most years, Major League Baseball players would be flocking to Florida and Arizona to begin spring training. That is not happening now due to this insane lockout. It may be a while before the Major League owners and the MLB Players Association get on the same page. However, some MLB players are putting aside the noise and are focused on getting healthy. One of them could be a very important piece to the 2022 New York Yankees starting rotation and that is clearly where he wants to be.

New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone has a ton of time to think about his pitching rotation these days. One problem is, he doesn't know who is doing well coming off of injuries and who is not. Nor does he know who general manager Brian Cashman will be able to add via trade or free agency. As the players are locked out of team facilities, communication between organizational staff and their players is supposed to be non-existent. From everything that I can gather, that is true. So, let's give the manager some help and design a realistic starting five to take the Bombers back to the World Series.

When Opening Day will take place, may be a bigger question than even the New York Yankees questionable Opening Day line-up. Let's have some fun and give general manager Brian Cashman a little help, while providing manager Aaron Boone with a winning line-up. Remember, we have to be realistic with our wish-list additions!

They have battled the ups and downs of 156 games of Major League Baseball, played through, hopefully, the back end of a pandemic. They weathered the criticisms of the media, as their $200 million dollar payroll dipped precariously out of the playoff picture. The experts wondered aloud if Hal Steinbrenner would drastically part ways with the steady hand of general manager Brian Cashman. Or, as most think would be the likely outcome, would Aaron Boone take the hit for his underperforming squad? 3 games may answer everyone's questions.

We have all seen teams collapse like the Yankees have been and unfortunately, they don't turn it around too easily. Teams that continuously blow leads seem to play the game scared. Anyone remember the collapse of the 2007 New York Mets? They had a 7 game lead in the National League East with 17 games to play. If your dugout is afraid that the game is going to fall apart, then it probably will.

Nothing says "run and hide" for a Major League manager like a nice bullpen meltdown on the last day before the All Star break, when your star studded team, projected to win the American League East, sits 8 games behind your arch rival. Ouch. Many managers have been dismissed "during the break" for similar credentials. Aaron Boone is lucky to have the steady hand of Brian Cashman behind him, for now.

Bullpen implosions like the ones yesterday demonstrated by both New York teams happen most everyday in baseball. When meltdowns happen on the last day of the season, the final game before the All Star break or on a getaway day at the conclusion of a series, it may demonstrate something more, focus.