Anthony Rizzo Assisting Yankees Manager Aaron Boone on Wednesday
In this story:
Aaron Boone will have an unofficial assistant manager by his side on Wednesday for the Yankees’ final game in Toronto.
Boone already has a bench coach in Carlos Mendoza, but the skipper will have some extra help. With New York having clinched the American League East on Tuesday, things are a little loose, so first baseman Anthony Rizzo will assist Boone during the series finale.
"Rizz is helping me out today," Boone explained. "He helped out with the lineup today, putting it together. He's gonna help in the decision-making process this game."
It’s common for players to do things like this at the end of a season once their team has clinched (or been eliminated).
Rizzo is one of several starters getting a day off from playing with the division locked up, but Boone is still putting him to work. The smiling skipper said there were no disagreements when it came to putting Wednesday’s lineup together.
"Once we settled on which guys we wanted to have down and things like that, we kind of worked it out together,” Boone continued. “Looking forward to having him down there close by me. Maybe I'll step back a little bit."
While Rizzo will be involved, Boone will still have the final say on in-game moves and be responsible for things like mound visits.
At 33 years old, Rizzo still has a few years to go before he gets into coaching – if that’s what he wants to do when he retires. He’s enjoyed his first full season with the Yankees, tying his career-high for home runs with 32 while adding 75 RBI and a .228/.342/.494 slash line.
MORE:
- How Yankees Will Benefit From Clinching Division Title With Time to Spare
- Miguel Andújar 'Super Happy' About Fresh Start With Pirates
- Yankees Celebrate Division Title, Reflecting on Journey That 'Made Us Stronger'
Follow Gary Phillips on Twitter (@GaryHPhillips). Be sure to bookmark Inside The Pinstripes and check back daily for news, analysis and more.
