Boone gets suspended for outburst
New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone was suspended following his profane rant at a rookie umpire and opted to serve his one-game ban against the Colorado Rockies on Friday night.
Boone aimed a memorable tirade at plate umpire Brennan Miller following his ejection during a doubleheader opener against Tampa Bay on Thursday. MLB executive Joe Torre announced Friday that Boone had been suspended one game and fined, neither of which surprised Boone, who acknowledged making contact with Miller with the bill of his cap.
“I figured I’d be getting a call at some point from Mr. Torre,” he said. “And I did.”
Boone was ejected in the second inning for arguing from the dugout with Miller, who had called a third strike on Brett Gardner. The rant was captured by television microphones, and Boone’s repeated reference to his hitters as “savages” in the batter’s box went viral and was being sold online on T-shirts before the game ended.
Tensions were running hot in New York’s dugout, where Gardner left dents in the roof by repeatedly slamming his bat into it. Boone said he sensed someone was going to be ejected and decided to make sure it was him instead of one of his players.
“Sometimes you try to divert attention from you players, so that’s going to happen,” he said. “But also understanding that I don’t want to just let it rip, especially language-wise. My kids look at me funny, and you do have a responsibility.”
Boone added that “some of the foul language, I’m not real proud of.”
Harvey is released: The Los Angeles Angels gave up on their $11 million investment in Matt Harvey, designating the 30-year-old right-hander for assignment.
Harvey was 3-5 with a 7.09 ERA in 12 starts. He gave up six runs, seven hits and five walks over six innings in a 6-2 loss to the Houston Astros on Thursday night.
“The decision was made because we felt like it would increase our chance of winning games,” Angels manager Brad Ausmus said after discussing the move with general manager Billy Eppler. “Matt was a very well-liked teammate, a guy that everyone pulled for, including myself. But we’re in the business of winning baseball games.”
Once dubbed The Dark Knight, Harvey was among baseball’s most dominant starters for a time with the New York Mets. He started the 2013 All-Star Game at Citi Field but hurt his elbow later that summer and never consistently regained his 98 mph fastball or his command following Tommy John surgery.
Harvey lost his spot in the Mets rotation after four starts last year and had a 10.50 ERA in four relief appearances. When he refused to accept a minor league assignment, the Mets traded him to Cincinnati. Harvey went 7-7 with a 4.50 ERA in 24 starts for the Reds, became a free agent and signed with the Angels.
He did not pitch for Los Angeles between May 23 and July 13 because of a strained back, and his fastball velocity averaged 92 mph in the two starts after his return. He gave up 48 runs and 63 hits in 592⁄3 innings this season.