Brother shares if Aaron Boone is worried about Yankees future amid playoff run

New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone is in the last guaranteed year of a contract that includes a club option for 2025 and likely understands team owner Hal Steinbrenner’s expectation that the team will capture — at the least — an American League pennant. 

Before the Bronx Bombers clinched a spot in the American League Championship Series with Thursday’s 3-1 win over the Kansas City Royals, Bret Boone discussed whether his younger brother worries about his Yankees’ future amid the club’s playoff run. 

“I don’t think he’s even thinking that far ahead,” Bret Boone said about Aaron Boone during an appearance on New York sports radio station WFAN, as shared by Lou DiPietro of Audacy. “You know how it is in New York, and I realize it’s a tough spot. But I’ve also had heart-to-heart talks with him going, ‘Well, you know when you sign on the dotted line to be the skipper of the New York Yankees, you know what comes with that, and that’s a lot more scrutiny than maybe other skippers around the league.’ …His perspective is, ‘I want to be in the hottest pot boiling to manage,’ and I don’t think Aaron thinks too far ahead.” 

The Yankees have made the playoffs six times in seven years under Boone, but the storied franchise hasn’t played in a World Series since it won the 2009 Fall Classic. As of Friday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook listed the Yankees as -200 betting favorites to get past the Cleveland Guardians or Detroit Tigers in the upcoming ALCS. 

It’s unclear who Steinbrenner could target as a potential Aaron Boone replacement if the club doesn’t win the final game of the postseason tournament. Alex Cora and Terry Francona were two big names linked with the Yankees this past summer, but both are now unavailable. 

The New York Mets thrived under first-year manager Carlos Mendoza in 2024. Mendoza previously served as a bench coach under Aaron Boone but was largely unknown when he accepted the Mets job last fall. Perhaps Steinbrenner could take a similar approach if he decides to make a change in November. 

“What I see from the outside is players love him,” Bret Boone added about Aaron during the interview, “and he obviously has their back, sometimes to a fault. But at the end of the day, he does a really good job. Players win games, and managers tend to lose them, and managers are hired to be fired.” 

Team captain Aaron Judge is among noteworthy Yankees players who have repeatedly backed Aaron Boone. Still, such support likely won’t be enough for Boone to hold onto the job if his club’s ongoing postseason journey ends with an ALCS defeat. How Boone deals with that pressure could determine if the Yankees end a World Series drought that has gone on for far too long in the eyes of paying customers.