Aaron Boone takes responsibility for lineup card blunder involving new Yankee Tyler Lyons
BUFFALO — Aaron Boone took the ultimate responsibility for Tuesday night’s lineup card blunder. More important than blame, however, was that the snafu was a reminder to the Yankees that they need to, as their manager would say, " tighten....this...(stuff)....up," in this final week of the regular season.
The Yankees tried to put Tyler Lyons, who they had signed and activated Tuesday afternoon, into the eighth inning of their 12-1 win over the Blue Jays. As Lyons got to the mound and began warming up, the home plate umpire checked his lineup card and did not see Lyons listed — meaning he was ineligible to pitch.
“Ultimately, it’s on us and on me, to make sure we’re triple checked and make sure everything that goes through the system or potentially is going through the system is buttoned up,” the Yankees manager said before Wednesday night’s game against the Blue Jays at Sahlen Field. "So, I think it’s a reminder of how diligent we have to be on that kind of stuff.
“Yesterday was a little bit unique, in that when we sent in our card with Lyons on it, it was pretty early in the day prior to the transaction going through MLB,” Boone explained.
Under the coronavirus-pandemic health and safety protocols set in place by MLB, there is no more exchanging of lineup cards at home plate before the game. The scorecards are sent to MLB and the league relays them to the umpires room at the ballpark. Still, each team has the right to check and revise them up until first pitch.
Zack Britton jumped in and pitched the eighth inning instead of Lyons.
“I had spoken to Boonie before the game and I told him I kind of wanted to pitch last night anyway,” Britton said. "I had some days off and obviously we don’t have a ton of appearances. I wanted to get in there, as we’re approaching the postseason, get as many outings as I can right now to stay sharp. So I knew I was pitching yesterday. I believe Gerrit (Cole) was going to go back out before we scored the three runs there. I was gonna go in for Gerrit because I don’t think he had that many pitches left. So I was mentally ready to go in and so it wasn’t that hard.
WILLING AND ABLE
Jordan Montgomery knows he has likely pitched his way out of consideration for the first round of the playoffs, since the Yankees will only need three starters for that series. The 27-year old, however, is fine if the Yankees want to use him out of the bullpen.
“I’m just here to help the team so whatever I gotta do to get outs for them I will,” Montgomery said Wednesday afternoon.
Montgomery offered that he had done it before. His sole relief appearance came last year as the Yankees were bringing him back from Tommy John surgery. The lefty thinks his stuff would play out of the bullpen.
“Definitely probably gonna throw harder from the pen,” Montgomery said. “I think it’d be pretty good. ...whatever they think they want me to do.”
Montgomery makes his final regular season start Thursday night in the series-finale against the Blue Jays here.
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