Fire Aaron Boone (Again)

by EJ Fagan

April 26, 2025

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NOTE: The following comes from EJ Fagan's substack page and is shared with permission.

Please check out EJ's substack page for more great articles.

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Why was Devin Williams in the game last night?

Here is what Williams has done so far this season:

He’s been absolutely awful. He’ll probably be fine eventually, but clearly something is wrong that needs to be fixed.

You know what the worst possible time to see if Devin Williams has figured it out yet? The 9th inning with a 1-0 lead against a division rival the day after an off day. Fernando Cruz, Mark Leiter Jr. or freaking Luke Weaver all give you a better chance to win the ballgame than Devin Williams. Predictably, he had nothing.

We all know why Devin Williams was in this game. It’s the same reason why Cody Bellinger has been batting 3rd and 5th all season. It’s the same reason why Jasson Dominguez didn’t get a start (or a pinch hitting chance!) against a right-handed starter despite batting .313/.365/.500 against them in 2025. It’s the same reason why Paul Goldschmidt isn’t going to sit against righties at all this season despite barely managing a .700 OPS against them.

It’s also why Alex Verdugo was playing all throughout the playoffs last year and DJ LeMahieu managed to amass 228 plate appearances with a .527 OPS and Anthony Rizzo played all the way to the World Series.

It’s why Yankee fans are dreading DJ LeMahieu getting close to returning, because they have good reason to expect that Boone will run out there for months even if he’s the worst hitter in the major leagues. Ditto for Giancarlo Stanton taking Ben Rice’s spot in the lineup.

It’s all because Aaron Boone thinks it is more important to give veteran players their due than to try and win the ballgame. Even if everyone in the park, probably including Boone himself, knows that they are not the best choice to try and win the ballgame. He grew up in a baseball clubhouse and has deeply internalized the pecking order.

You know what we call managers that don’t try and win the ballgame? A loser. Aaron Boone ishould have been fired a long time ago.