Aaron Boone explains Yankees' quiet trade deadline

Manager Aaron Boone attempted to explain Wednesday why the New York Yankees made no major moves ahead of Tuesday's MLB trade deadline. 

"I think sometimes it came down to we didn’t want rentals that were going to cost us a lot of things too," Boone said during the latest edition of the "Talkin' Yanks" podcast, as shared by Alex Smith of SNY. "So, we’re looking to probably thread that needle a little bit of getting more controllable pieces that would help us moving forward. And again, what’s the cost? I don’t know all the costs. I don’t know all the things we said no to, all the things that were on the table. That’s more for the front office that were in those intimate conversations during the 10 days when everyone’s kind of hunkered down up there." 

The Yankees were 35-25 when reigning American League Most Valuable Player Aaron Judge first began missing games due to a torn ligament in his big right toe. New York lost four of its first five contests since Judge's return late last week, and the 55-52 Bronx Bombers entered Wednesday's MLB action sitting three-and-a-half games back in the race for a wild-card spot. 

Judge publicly campaigned earlier this week for general manager Brian Cashman to acquire reinforcements before Tuesday's deadline. Cashman instead landed a pair of right-handers, neither of whom can provide needed pop for the Yankees' lineup over the next two months. 

"Trust me, I think all conversations were had and you always want to improve your club when you can, certainly from my seat," Boone continued. "But at the same time, my job is to try to help create an environment where guys have a chance to get unlocked, and the reality is we’re talking about a handful of players that I still feel like are very capable that have gone through a really tough stretch." 

It's not all bad news for the Yankees. Only the Toronto Blue Jays (holding the last wild-card berth), Boston Red Sox (one-and-a-half games back) and Los Angeles Angels (three games back) ended Tuesday's action ahead of New York in the battle for a playoff spot. 

Back in May, Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner praised Boone for the fact that players always "want to play for him and they want to win for him." Boone insisted Wednesday that those still inside the clubhouse after the deadline are "not going to roll over." 

That's all well and good, but even an inexpensive rental of an outfielder likely would've meant more for Boone's current squad than a reliever assuming Cashman is serious about pursuing an October to remember this fall.