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The Yankees announced that they’ve signed manager Aaron Boone to a two-year contract extension covering the 2026-27 seasons. His previous contract was set to expire after 2025, so this takes him out of “lame duck” status.
The news doesn’t come as a shock. Teams generally don’t like to have managers operating in a lame-duck position. The Yankees did it with Boone once before, in 2021, but that was a rare occurrence. He originally joined the Yankees via a three-year deal going into 2018, with a club option for 2021. The Yanks picked up that option and did let Boone manage that season on an expiring contract.
On Oct. 19 of that year, Boone and the club agreed to a new three-year deal that covered the 2022-24 seasons and came with a ’25 option. There was perhaps a bit of drama around his status as manager when the club missed the playoffs in 2023, but they bounced back last year by winning the American League East and going as far as the World Series. The Yanks picked up their ’25 option at the start of the offseason. More recently, both owner Hal Steinbrenner and general manager Brian Cashman spoke of wanting to get an extension done.
Boone is a divisive figure in the fan base, but there’s a lot of good stuff on his track record. The Yanks have made the postseason in six of his seven seasons at the helm, with the aforementioned 2023 campaign being the lone exception. They have had some tough postseason losses but, as mentioned, just went to the World Series a few months ago. As skipper, he has a regular season record of 603-429, a .584 winning percentage.
Although some fans will remain unhappy with Boone until he wins a title, it would have been very unusual for a club to move on from a manager or even let him stay in lame-duck status on the heels of winning a pennant.
As always, the Yankees will be going into the upcoming season with their eyes on contention. They lost Juan Soto but had an aggressive offseason nonetheless, adding Max Fried, Cody Bellinger, Paul Goldschmidt, Devin Williams and others. Another disappointing season will embolden those who are already upset with Boone, but the club clearly feels good enough to put pen to paper with him, avoiding in-season storylines about his uncertain contract status.
More must-reads:
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- The '2024 MLB runs scored leaders' quiz
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Phillies rumors: Insider makes $604 million Kyle Tucker prediction that will make Cubs sad
The Philadelphia Phillies finished with a 95-67 record in 2024, winning the NL East for the first time in 13 years. This season the Phillies are considered one of the biggest threats to the Dodgers’ World Series hopes, as the team boasts an excellent, deep rotation and All-Star-caliber players throughout the lineup. Although Kyle Tucker is just settling in with the Chicago Cubs after being traded by the Houston Astros over the offseason, one insider expects the veteran right fielder’s stay in the Windy City to be brief. “After a strong season with the Cubs, Kyle Tucker signs a 14-year, $604 million contract with the Phillies in free agency,” Jim Bowden of The Athletic wrote in his list of 25 predictions for the 2025 season. “The deal includes significant deferrals,” Bowden added. Would Kyle Tucker choose the Phillies over the Cubs? Tucker avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year, $16.5 million deal with Chicago for the upcoming season. And he’s been outspoken about his interest in signing a long-term deal with the team. Tucker won Cubs fans over by discussing how happy he is to be on the team. He also praised the organization and its fanbase. But in Bowden’s prophecy, Tucker eschews an extension with the Cubs and choses to join the Phillies. Tucker had a good run with the Astros, spending the first seven seasons of his eight-year career in Houston. A shin fracture hampered his 2024 campaign, costing Tucker 79 games. But when he was healthy enough to play, he was excellent, earning his third consecutive All-Star Game nod. Tucker appeared in the World Series three times with the Astros and was a member of the team that beat the Phillies in the 2022 Fall Classic. Philadelphia believes it has a championship-caliber team in 2025 but adding Tucker would certainly be a boon. The Phillies’ current right fielder, Nick Castellanos is signed with the team through the 2026 season but that’s unlikely to prevent the team from pursuing Tucker. And his Gold Glove probably gives him the edge at the position. While deferrals play a role in the actual value of contracts Bowden’s prognostications have Tucker’s deal surpassing Vladimir Guerero Jr.’s. While he predicts a 14-year, $604 million pact between Tucker and the Phillies, Bowden believes the Blue Jays will re-sign Vladdy to a 15-year, $577 million contract.
Connor Bedard Receives Warning Regarding Extending His Blackhawks Contract
Connor Bedard has received a warning about extending his contract with the Blackhawks when the time comes, which could shift his future plans. Connor Bedard will become eligible to ink a long-term extension with the Chicago Blackhawks on July 1, but NHL insider Craig Button believes he needs to keep those talks going as long as he can. Discussing on the 'Donnie Dhali' show Wednesday, Button advised Bedard to wait until his rookie contract expires in 2026. That summer would be his initial opportunity to hit the market as a restricted free agent. 'The Chicago Blackhawks are awful,' Button said. 'If I was Bedard's agent, I wouldn't sign him to any extension. 'There's no benefit to signing early. He'll make the same money if he waits until next July. Plus, waiting opens him up to potential offer sheets.' Bedard leads the Blackhawks with 56 points in 71 games and was the Calder Trophy winner last season as the NHL Rookie of the Year after scoring 61 points in 68 games. Chicago, however, is having another dismal season, last in the Central Division at 21-41-9 and already officially out of playoff contention. The Blackhawks need to prove to Bedard they're serious about winning Button insisted they have yet to prove they can succeed at constructing around the 2023 No. 1 overall pick and therefore it makes sense that Bedard hold back on any long-term decision. 'Bedard needs evidence from the Chicago Blackhawks that a long-term deal is worth it,' Button said. 'Right now, there is nothing in Chicago that makes you think staying is beneficial.' Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman echoed that sentiment on Sirius XM NHL Radio, adding that Bedard might consider waiting for the next Collective Bargaining Agreement to be negotiated. 'Why would anyone sign before that? Just to see maybe if anything changes?' Friedman said. 'Now, if you get an idea that the rules aren't going to change, then you don't do it. But I did have someone say to me (that) for a star, for one of the top players - and Bedard is the franchise player in Chicago - you might wait to see if any rules change.' A new CBA could alter offer sheet dynamics and salary structures, and place the Blackhawks in a difficult spot if other teams make offers to their emerging star.
Maple Leafs' depth in crease takes potential hit as goalie injury rears its ugly head
The Maple Leafs had better hope that Joseph Woll and Anthony Stolarz remain healthy down the stretch as their depth in goal took a potentially massive hit over the weekend. A surprise signing by the Leafs when free agency opened, Matt Murray returned to the Toronto this summer and secured his first NHL win in more than 600 days in mid-December. Unfortunately, while the Leafs switched between Murray, Woll and Dennis Hildeby with Stolarz recovering from surgery, Murray was the odd man out after after a sub-par performance a few days later. After being demoted, Murray was returned to the Marlies, where he has since rotated with Hildeby and rookie Artur Akhtyamov. Since January, Murray is 4-1-1 and would have been in line for another win on Saturday. Unfortunately, he was forced to leave the Marlies' 4-2 win over the Belleville Senators after the first period following a scary collision. As Murray was behind the Marlies' net playing the puck, Senators forward Cole Reinhardt skated behind and made no attempt to avoid colliding with Murray. Murray was shaken up on the play, but finished the period before giving way to Hildeby for the remainder of the game. There has been no update on Murray since the collision, but given the fact that the two-time Stanley Cup Champion has suffered from head and neck injuries in the past, it would not be surprising to see him miss some time as the team follows the Leafs' cautious approach to handling injuries this season.
NFL Draft Guru Suggests Blockbuster Dallas Cowboys Trade
The Dallas Cowboys could definitely use a spark on the heels of back-to-back disappointing offseasons. And when they did make headlines, it wasn't always for the right reasons. Per the NFL Network's Daniel Jeremiah, there's still a way for the Cowboys to make a big splash in next month's draft in Titletown — and that's to move up and make a push for Colorado's Travis Hunter. "I miss the days when the Cowboys were aggressive fun. Spice it up. Trade up for Travis Hunter," Jeremiah posted to X. Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones previously said that the team would be "selectively aggressive" when it comes to free agency and the draft. "We're gonna look at everything we can. We're going to be selectively aggressive," Jones explained. "…You have certain amount of resources they'll allow to have. We'll look at that, but we're going to try to improve our football team, not try but we're gonna improve our football team. We expect to have success next year." It's been a long time since the Jones Family went out and paid what it took to bring the biggest stars to Dallas (a la the George Steinbrenner Yankees or the modern-day Dodgers). The Cowboys are the most valuable franchise in sports at over $10 billion, but sometimes you can't tell. Dallas currently hold the 12th overall pick in the upcoming draft so they have some capital to potentially trade up. Whether or not a team in the top three would be willing to deal with them (or if they'll even be aggressive enough to seek one) is another story however. Jerry and Co. haven't had a dynamic two-way athlete like Hunter since his head coach, Deion Sanders. And how fun would that be to see Travis continue Coach Prime's legacy with a Star on his helmet?
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