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Oct 8, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone signals to the bullpen during the seventh inning against the Toronto Blue Jays during game four of the ALDS round for the 2025 MLB playoffs at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Aaron Boone Responds to Yankees Legends' Criticism

Originally posted on New York Yankees on SI
By Erin Shapland | Last updated Nov 6, 2025 7:00 AM ET

New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone has taken a lot of flack this season for the team's performance, especially during the team's summer slump. In the media, two Yankees legends weighed in on what the Yankees were doing wrong, sometimes rather harshly.

In a recent interview with Talkin' Yanks, Boone talked about comments from Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez in more detail, noting that their logic wasn't always consistent, but that sometimes, that's how the media game is played.

"They were pretty loud in the postseason, it's also — media is a game that, you say the more neutral thing, it might not get heard as loud," Jake Storiale said. "They came out pretty loud against some of the stuff the Yankees are doing, do you consider that noise? Or are your ears open for that?"

"I don't know all that they said, I did hear a little bit of, like — I know Alex said something about, once we got knocked out, that we were really poorly put together, yet three days before he picked us to win the World Series," Boone said. "So, that felt a little contradictory there. But, look. They're in situations where they've got to have opinions and obviously they should have strong opinions, and I don't begrudge them for that at all."

Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

Jeter and A Rod on the Yankees' Issues

A Rod commented that the Yankees were not well-constructed back in August, as they struggled to keep up after some big moves at the trade deadline. In the same interview, Jeter had insisted that the team needed to play better baseball, and that the defense issues were their primary issue.

“Here is my biggest concern,” Rodriguez said, as transcribed by Thomas Gamba-Ellis of the New York Post. “You bring in seven guys and you’re still miles away from winning a world title. … You’ve got to restructure this roster. I like a lot of the players individually but together it just doesn’t work. I’m not sure where you go from here.”

“They make way too many mistakes,” Jeter said. “And you can’t get away with making that number of mistakes against great teams. It just doesn’t happen. [...] You have to clean it up."

The Yankees did manage to climb back from that rough spot after the trade deadline, making it to the AL Wild Card Series with the Boston Red Sox and eliminating them there before being taken out by the Blue Jays in the ALDS. Three of their deadline acquisitions in particular — David Bednar, Jose Caballero and Ryan McMahon — put in strong performances for the rest of the season and are expected to return.

John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images

Boone as a Manager

The problems most fans seem to have with Boone are his leadership style, which is considered to be too gentle by some, and his structural choices when it comes to lineups, including bullpen selections and giving some players too many chances while they're struggling. His repeated phrase, "It's right in front of us" became a meme among fans during that summer losing stretch, when it didn't seem to be right in front of them at all.

Boone has managed the Yankees since 2018, has led them to the playoffs in every season but one (2023) and led them to one World Series (2024). He is expected to stay on as manager through at least 2027, when his contract is up.

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