MLB playoffs 2018: Aaron Boone gives weird explanation for ALDS Game 3 decisions that doomed the Yankees

The Yankees manager misused his bullpen badly as the Red Sox cruised to a 16-1 victory in Game 3 of the ALDS.

NEW YORK — Aaron Boone tried to explain his thinking for his bullpen decisions in Game 3 of the ALDS. The emphasis here is on the word tried. 

It is doubtful that it will satisfy the many Yankee fans who, unlike the Yankees manager, knew it was a mistake to let starter Luis Severino return to the mound for the fourth inning after a shaky performance in the first three.

Severino allowed two singles and a walk to the bottom of the Red Sox lineup before Boone finally pulled him. But the damage was done. Boston exploded for seven runs to spark a 16-1 blowout that is unprecedented in Yankees franchise history. 

“(I was) just hoping he could get something started to get through the bottom of the lineup there, and then we’re going to have (starter Lance) Lynn ready for bats no matter what,” Boone said.

“And then once the first two guys got on (base) there, thinking (Jackie) Bradley is in a bunting situation, thinking we’re going to take him out and go to the pen there. It just snowballed on him. Lance had a little bit of trouble, obviously, coming in there. So it just turned into a really bad inning for us.”

It’s pretty simple: Boone blew it

So to review: Boone was taking a wait-and-see approach with a struggling starter at a time of year when a quick hook is almost always the right decision. And then, when he did make the hook, he went with his fifth starter in a relief situation instead of a bevy of rested, proven relievers.

Why not Dellin Betances or David Robertson?

“Well, because with Dellin, we figured we only had for an inning tonight,” Boone said. “Certainly in hindsight, we could have started the fourth inning with Robbie or something, but we really felt like Sevy could at least get us a couple outs in that fourth inning before turning it over to Lynn, and then we could roll out our guys. But we just couldn’t stop the bleeding at all. That was the thinking behind it.”

Again: Lynn is usually a starter. He’s not accustomed to coming into the game with the bases loaded and no one out. He promptly walked in a run and gave us two hits as the Red Sox blew the game open. 

“We feel like Lance, in a lot of ways, against righties gives us our best chance,” Boone said. “He just didn’t really have it tonight, but stuff-wise, the reason he’s down there and in that spot is for that part of the lineup. He just came in struggling right away with his command. So the inning just got away.”

And, because it did, so might the entire 2018 postseason.

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