Unproven Aaron hits homer in Yank launch

Nothing Aaron Boone said at his introductory press conference on Wednesday is proof that he’ll be a good manager, but I’ll say this: I came away impressed with the way he handled his first day under the bright lights, and I can sure see why the Yankees believe he’s the right guy.

It wasn’t so much anything in particular that Boone said as much as his overall demeanor. For someone who has never coached or managed at any level, he seemed remarkably relaxed under questioning — more relaxed than I saw Joe Girardi in 10 years at a press conference.

As such he wasn’t trying too hard to oversell himself, yet Boone’s sense of confidence that he can be successful as a manager was unmistakable, and that’s not something you can fake.

Certainly not in a majorleague clubhouse.

Boone knows that as well as anyone, having spent a lifetime around baseball, as a third-generation big-leaguer and the son of a former major-league manager, and said as much when he spoke of needing to earn the trust and respect of the Yankee players.

“Big league players are great at understanding who’s for real and who’s not,” he said. “And I’d like to think they’ll know that in very short order.”

So maybe Boone will prove to be The Natural in his first crack at managing. Certainly that’s the impression he made on the Yankees, to the point where he alleviated the concerns Hal Steinbrenner had shared publicly about a candidate with no coaching or managing experience.

“It was a concern, there’s no doubt about it,” Steinbrenner said Wednesday, “but it was clear that his knowledge of the game is very, very impressive. He grew up around the game and it was evident that a great deal of wisdom was imparted to him his whole life.”

Steinbrenner said the feeling about Boone was so strong among the Yankee executives who interviewed him, starting with Cashman, that the owner decided he didn’t need to interview him personally, as was the original plan.

“When I get that kind of recommendation from my top people,” Steinbrenner said, “I just didn’t see the need.”

Yes, maybe this is simply in Boone’s blood. He said that even as a young kid, he was paying attention to the decisions his father, Bob, was making as manager of the Phillies and then the Royals, and people who know him say that he has always been consumed with the intricacies of the game.

Of course, none of that means he’ll make all the right moves in the dugout when the games begin, or that he’ll handle the pressure of being second-guessed for such moves, especially if the Yankees aren’t playing up to expectations.

That’s the gamble of hiring any manager, but especially one who hasn’t been in the dugout in a role other than as a player.

Cashman had a good answer for that on Wednesday, however, admitting it took a bit of courage to go with his gut because he believed so strongly in Boone.

Or as he put it: “Would be convicted enough to do what is right as opposed to what is safe? I believe I’m doing what is right. I’m betting on the ceiling of Aaron Boone.”

At some point, and fairly soon, Boone will have to lead the Yankees to a championship for Cashman to win that bet. Such are the expectations for a team that came within a win of reaching the World Series, a team whose young talent has dynasty potential.

How Boone handles such pressure is part of the great unknown as well, but on Wednesday he offered reason to believe he has the right temperament for managing in New York.

“I’m a pretty consistent person,” was the way he put it. “You can rely on me. Whether it’s going haywire or we’re rolling, I’m somebody people will be able to count on.

“I know there are going to be nights when the wrong guy goes into the game, and I’m going to get blamed for a move that doesn’t work. I’m ok with that. That’s not something I thought about when this opportunity came along.”

That can be half the battle of managing in New York, if Boone has the personality to let criticism roll off his back. That stuff seemed to eat at Girardi at times, adding to the tension he created for people around him with his grinding intensity.

From all indications Boone is more like Joe Torre, whose people skills are what helped him be the perfect manager for the Yankees. Torre was always at his best at deflecting crisis, at his most upbeat when the walls seemed to be closing in on his ballclub. can’t predict how Boone will react if times get tough during his first season, but he does seem to have that type of personality. The ease with which he handled all the attention on Wednesday doesn’t mean he’ll have anything resembling the success Torre enjoyed, but it certainly offered reason to believe the Yankees made a smart call here.

We’ll know for sure soon enough.

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