Gleyber Torres benched by Yankees' manager Aaron Boone for lack of hustle
NEW YORK – Yankees second baseman Gleyber Torres was lifted from Friday night’s game at Yankee Stadium by manager Aaron Boone, who reached a tipping point regarding a moment of non-hustle by his second baseman.
"I just felt like in that moment, I needed to do that,'' said Boone, following an 8-5 win by the Toronto Blue Jays, ending the Yanks' five-game winning streak.
The Yankees maintained a share of the AL East lead with the Orioles, who also lost Friday.
After the game, Torres was apologetic and said he agreed with Boone's decision. The two spoke at length after the game and Boone said Torres would return to Saturday's lineup.
"He’s the skipper, he (made) the right decision,'' said Torres, vowing to learn from the episode "and be ready for tomorrow.''
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Having spoken with Torres, Boone said it was "time to move on,'' quickly growing terse about his rare show of in-game discipline with a player who had tested his patience before.
"The reality is, I have a ton of grace, because a lot of people don’t know the whole story on every situation and what guys are dealing with,'' said Boone.
Gleyber Torres' non-hustle costs the Yankees
In the second inning against Blue Jays’ starter Kevin Gausman, Torres smashed a liner off the left field wall, barely missing a home run.
But Torres watched the ball’s flight, costing him a chance at a double.
Instead, Torres was on first base when Anthony Volpe connected on a two-out double to left. Waved home by third base coach Luis Rojas, Torres was thrown out at the plate.
Torres played defensively at second base in the third inning but was replaced by Oswaldo Cabrera in the top of the fourth.
Boone said he didn't immediately sub out Torres because he "didn't want to ambush'' Cabrera that quickly, with the inning having just ended.
Between innings, the YES Network broadcast showed Torres and Boone having what appeared to be a serious dugout discussion, which neither would fully detail.
Gleyber Torres' rough free agent walk year
Despite the Yankees' five-game winning streak that began last Saturday, Torres had a shaky defensive week, mishandling some potential double play transfers and a couple of easy groundballs.
Torres has dealt with a groin issue at times this season, but he's also come under further scrutiny for defensive lapses and lack of hustle during his free agent walk year.
If the end of his Yankees' tenure is weighing on Torres, there's the added reality slap of this week's acquisition of Jazz Chisholm, the team's likely second baseman for 2025 and beyond.
Late Friday, Torres said that he had no physical issues; he simply thought he'd hit a homer and failed to run. I have to be more mature in that situation and just play hard,’’ said Torres.
Aaron Judge's take on the Gleyber Torres decision
Captain Aaron Judge backed Boone's decision - "he's the manager, he makes the moves'' - and credited Torres for being in the dugout for the game’s balance, though he appeared forlorn at times.
“Whatever I do tonight, I don’t want to be the bad part of the night,’’ said Torres. “I just want to be there with my teammates.’’
"Speaks volumes about the type of guy he is deep down,'' said Judge, who also spoke with Torres. Judge agreed with the manager's decision and felt Torres got the message.
"If I know Gleyber, something like this won't happen again,'' said Judge. "He takes pride in his work and his craft. he's definitely not happy about what happened.
"I'll bet you the rest of his career, something like this won't happen again.''