Yankees manager Aaron Boone suspended one game for 'recent conduct' towards umpires
NEW YORK – One day after Aaron Boone’s latest tirade against umpires, the Yankees manager was suspended for a game and fined by Major League Baseball.
Boone served that ban Friday night at Yankee Stadium, in what became another dull night for the Yankees' lineup.
San Diego Padres starter Joe Musgrove carted a 6.75 ERA into the opener of a three-game series, but "when he's on, he's pretty good," DJ LeMahieu said flatly, after a 5-1 Yankees loss before a sellout crowd.
Among the spectators was Boone, who informed bench coach Carlos Mendoza that he'd be subbing in the manager's chair about an hour before Friday night's first pitch.
"Yeah, I was a little surprised," said Mendoza, after the Yankees dropped their third straight game.
Aaron Boone's 'recent conduct' toward umps draws one-game ban
In a statement announcing the suspension, MLB cited Boone’s "recent conduct toward Major League umpires, including the actions following his ejection from Thursday night’s game against the Baltimore Orioles."
Boone earned his fourth ejection of the year, his third in the last 10 games, for his complaints about plate umpire Edwin Moscoso’s strike zone.
Last Sunday at Cincinnati, Boone was tossed in the first inning after umpires awarded the Reds a run on a two-out double that was initially ruled foul but overturned on replay. The runner in question had been on first base.
On May 15, at Toronto, Boone was ejected in the top of the eighth inning for arguing a 1-1 pitch to Aaron Judge that was called a strike by plate ump Clint Vondrak.
Boone was ejected nine times last year, leading the majors in that category.
About 90 minutes before MLB announced its suspension, Boone acknowledged with a bit of a laugh that "I think I've earned that reputation'' of being argumentative with umpires.
Aaron Boone on his interaction with umpires
"I don't like that it's happened a few times this week," Boone said Friday, prior to the suspension. "I'd like to not get ejected, and hopefully I can start a long streak of not getting ejected.
"I'm not necessarily afraid to, but no, it's not my intent to get ejected and I don't want to. And hopefully, I won't for a while."
"Do I think it's leading to a quick hook? Not necessarily," said Boone, although he added that, "(Thursday) night, it was."
Boone maintained that he did not warrant an ejection for expressing his displeasure from the dugout Thursday, regarding Moscoso's strike zone judgment with Yankees starter Clarke Schmidt on the mound.
"Maybe I'm delusional that I did more than I think (Thursday)," said Boone. "I don't think that's the case."
Expanding on Thursday's ejection, Boone said: "That could be just a one-off,'' said Boone, adding: "I don't think I'm being targeted by umpires. They're not going to tolerate certain things, but I think I'm treated fairly."
Boone got into trouble Thursday for his post-ejection arguing on the field, getting in Moscoso's face to make his point and then trying to do so twice more, only to be blocked by crew chief Chris Guccione.
Yankees bats stay cold vs. San Diego
Meanwhile, the Yankees (30-22) have scored just two runs over their last 20 innings, and they watched the up-to-now disappointing Padres (24-27) break out with a pair of two-run homers - starting with Juan Soto's second-deck blast to right off rookie Randy Vasquez.
"I told him after the game, it's on us as an offense, not getting you a couple of runs," Aaron Judge said of Vasquez, who yielded just those two runs in his MLB debut over 4.2 innings.
The Yankees' No. 9 prospect after the 2022 season, as ranked by Baseball America, Vasquez had a cool demeanor, a sharp curveball at times, and recorded six strikeouts.
"Overall, a pretty good (debut). A great feeling," Vasquez said via an interpreter, adding that his grandfather (on his birthday) and several other relatives were among the 46,724 fans.
Musgrove held the Yanks to a run over 6.1 innings, but it was still a 2-0 game in the sixth, with two out, when Ron Marinaccio walked No. 9 hitter Austin Nola to set up Fernando Tatis Jr.'s backbreaking two-run shot to left.