Boone Will Be Back After Taking Yankees To World Series

 

Yankees Manager Aaron Boone. Photo by Jason Schott.

The Yankees announced on Friday morning that they exercised their 2025 option on Manager Aaron Boone, after he led them to win the American League pennant this season.

Boone took the helm in The Bronx in 2018 and he has compiled a 603-429 (.584) record. Aside from the shortened 60-game 2020 season, the Yankees have averaged 95 wins per year during Boone’s tenure. 

The Yankees have made the postseason in six of his first seven seasons, the third Bronx Bombers skipper to achieve that, along with Casey Stengel, also six of first seven (at that time, straight to the World Series), and Joe Torre, who took them there in each of first 12, which actually was his entire tenure. 

Boone is also is just the second manager in Major League history to make the playoffs in six of their first seven seasons as a manager with no prior experience (min. two games managed per season), joining Dave Roberts, who has taken the Dodgers to the postseason in his first nine seasons. Roberts' Dodgers just beat the Yankees in the World Series.

 

This season, Boone led the Yankees to their 41^st American League pennant and their first World Series appearance since 2009. They also have won three American League East division titles, in 2019, '22, and this season. The Yankees had the best record in the American League this season at 94-68 (.580). Boone has also taken them to the ALCS three times, falling to Houston in 2019 and '22 before beating Cleveland this October.

 

Boone said in a statement, “I am grateful for the trust placed in me to lead this team. It’s a responsibility – and an opportunity – that I will never take lightly. It’s a great privilege to show up for work every day and be surrounded by so many determined and talented players, coaches and staff members. Starting with Steinbrenner family, there is a collective commitment to excellence within this organization that is embedded in all that we do.  I’m already looking forward to reporting for spring training in Tampa and working tirelessly to return the Yankees to the postseason to compete for a World Championship.”

 

Senior Vice President and General Manager Brian Cashman said in a statement, "Aaron is a steadying presence in our clubhouse and possesses a profound ability to connect with and foster relationships with his players. Consistently exhibiting these skills in such a demanding and pressurized market is what makes him one of the game’s finest managers. Our work is clearly not done, but as we pursue the ultimate prize in 2025, I am excited to have Aaron back to lead our team."

Since Boone took over in 2018, the Yankees have posted the second-best record in the American League and fourth-best record in the Majors, trailing only the Los Angeles Dodgers (656-377, .635), Houston Astros (618-413, .599) and Atlanta Braves (604-427, .586). The Yankees have won at least 90 wins five times under Boone (2018, ’19, ’21, ’22 and ’24), and are one of only three teams to achieve it in that time span, along with the Dodgers (six) and Astros (five). 

 

The Yankees have won 22 postseason games since 2018, which is the second-most in the AL and fourth-most in the Major Leagues. The Yankees are one of five teams to make the postseason in at least six of the last seven seasons (since 2018) and one of only three teams to appear in at least three League Championship Series over that span (2019, ’22 and ’24).

 

Boone has made his mark on the Yankees history books, as his 603 career managerial wins rank seventh on the Yankees’ all-time list, trailing Joe McCarthy (1,460-867-21), Joe Torre (1,173-767-2), Casey Stengel (1,149-696-6), Miller Huggins (1,067-719-10), Ralph Houk (944-806-7) and Joe Girardi (910-710). His 22 career postseason wins are the fifth-most by a Yankees Manager in franchise history, trailing only Joe Torre (76), Casey Stengel (37), Joe McCarthy (29) and Joe Girardi (28). 

 

In 2019, Boone placed second in AL “Manager of the Year” voting (with 13 first place votes, nine second place votes and four third place votes) after guiding the Yankees to a 103-59 record, the club’s best mark since it went 103-59 in 2009. In his rookie managerial season in 2018, he led the Yankees to a 100-62 mark, becoming the sixth manager in Baseball history to lead his team to at least 100 wins in his rookie season, joining Ralph Houk (1961 Yankees, 109-53), Alex Cora (2018 Red Sox, 108-54), Dusty Baker (1993 Giants, 103-59), Sparky Anderson (1970 Reds, 102-60) and Mickey Cochrane (1934 Tigers, 101-53). His 203 managerial wins over that two-year stretch trails only Ralph Houk (205 wins with the Yankees from 1961-62) for the most by any manager in Major League Baseball history over his first two seasons at the helm.

 

Boone was named the 33rd Manager in club history on December 4, 2017 and was re-signed by the Yankees on October 19, 2021, to a three-year contract with a club option for 2025.