Despite a wildly disappointing 2023 season, Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner made a somewhat surprising decision this week to bring back manager Aaron Boone. As if the news wasn’t concerning enough for Yankees fans, Steinbrenner’s comments about Boone’s new strategic approach didn’t help matters either.
Boone apparently wants to bunt more.
Now, the new rules have brought back stolen bases to the game in ways MLB hasn’t seen for decades, but the sacrifice bunt is quickly becoming a relic of baseball’s past. The universal DH means that non-Ohtani pitchers aren’t hitting, so managers don’t have to account for an automatic out in the lineup. The emphasis teams have on advanced metrics also goes against bunting, which is seen as giving away an out just to move over a runner.
The Yankees only had nine sacrifice bunts in 2023 — down from 14 in 2022. But Boone apparently thinks bunts are back!
Hal Steinbrenner said Aaron Boone believes bunting is becoming a bigger part of the game. So the expectation is that will increase.
— Chris Kirschner (@ChrisKirschner) November 7, 2023
The Arizona Diamondbacks’ surprise run to the World Series may have played a part in this belief from Boone. The D-backs had 14 more sacrifice bunts than any other playoff team in 2023, so in a way, they proved that small ball could be effective. But the D-backs don’t play in Yankee Stadium, and they don’t have this generation’s best home run hitter like the Yankees do.
Plus, the team with the best record in baseball — the Braves — ranked last in sacrifice bunts. The Rangers ranked 22nd. The D-backs were the anomaly when it comes to bunting.
Obviously, something has to change with the Yankees’ approach in 2024, but MLB fans roasted Boone for thinking that bunting could be the answer.
