It was to be expected that the New York Yankees would react to the many questions and taunts from the Dodgers and their fans after losing last year’s Fall Classic in a painful and forceful manner, and it was also predictable that someone at some point would take it personally: that someone was Aaron Boone, the Yankees’ manager.
Boone himself admitted it months later, but also highlighted the fact that he did not react negatively, although he was tempted to do so. Therefore, he determined that the best way to counteract such criticism was on the field, where the Bronx Bombers promise to reverse the scene of ignominy that began when that ball slipped out of Aaron Judge’s hands in center field and ended when the Angels lifted the trophy.
“They have the right to say what they want”
Aaron Boone decided to keep it classy in the face of fierce criticism of his defense and his baserunning problems, something that they have been working on in recent months by renewing their roster and using that criticism as fuel to get the car ready for the 2025 season. “The reality is we didn’t play our best in the series and they won. So they have the right to say what they want,” Boone said with class.
Everything that has been said since the end of the World Series about the Yankees has turned out to be true, and this is what Jeff Passan at ESPN points out, drawing on the comments of former Angels pitcher Joe Kelly: “They’re using the criticism to feed off because, quite frankly, what the Dodgers said was true,” he said, recalling Kelly’s words: “We understand that the New York Yankees defensively are not as solid as we were, and that they have problems with base running.”
What actions did the Yankees take?
Just like the Dodgers’ comments, Juan Soto’s departure to the Mets worked like gasoline in a conflagration for the Bronx Bombers, as it motivated them to look further afield in their quest to right their defensive wrongs with the signings of Paul Goldschmidt, Cody Bellinger, Max Fried and Devin Williams, proven players in their positions and above all, with experience.
The actions have been taken, the past is in the past, and the class is intact, thanks to Aaron Boone and his emotional balance, but deep down, the Yankees only care about proving with facts and on the field that the Dodgers’ opinion of their mistakes and complexes is history.