Aaron Decide’s dedication to the celebrities and stripes isn’t stressing out his Yankees supervisor.
Aaron Boone says it feels just like the “right thing” for Decide to be the captain of Group USA on the World Baseball Traditional — a worldwide match that can pull the three-time American League MVP out of Yankees spring coaching.
“Of course, I’ll want to make sure everything goes smooth and we avoid certain things, but I think he’ll be ready to go do it,” Boone stated on Monday night time’s episode of YES Community’s “Hot Stove” present. “I’m excited for him to play in this kind of environment.”
That is Decide’s first time collaborating within the WBC. He sat out of the 2023 version after signing a nine-year, $360 million contract a number of months earlier, an offseason during which was named the Yankees’ captain.
Now, Decide headlines a star-powered American lineup that additionally consists of Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, Gunnar Henderson and Bobby Witt Jr.
Decide received his second consecutive AL MVP final season after main the majors with a .331 common and a 1.144 OPS to go along with 53 house runs and 114 RBI.
“Any time you’re playing high-stakes baseball that early in the year, there’s a little bit of concern, but it’s become a big part of our sport, and you understand that,” Boone stated. “All we can do is try and make sure we’re helping these guys put themselves in the best position to go out and there to do it safely and to be healthy doing it.”
Group USA received the WBC in 2017, nevertheless it misplaced to Group Japan in 2023’s instant-class ultimate sport.
That 2023 match generated super worldwide pleasure, with superstars corresponding to Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto competing for Japan; Francisco Lindor captaining Puerto Rico; and Juan Soto main the Dominican Republic.
Ohtani and Lindor are among the many big-name stars who’ve dedicated to compete on this yr’s occasion.
However the WBC — which is scheduled to happen from March 5-17 this yr — comes with threat. Through the 2023 match, then-Mets nearer Edwin Diaz suffered a season-ending knee damage.
Group USA has by no means had bother assembling a potent batting order, however front-line pitchers have typically been reluctant to take part.
That’s not the case this yr, because the Group USA rotation consists of Tarik Skubal, Paul Skenes and Joe Ryan, in addition to Nolan McLean and Clay Holmes of the Mets.
Yankees ace Max Fried declined an invite, however teammate David Bednar is dedicated to pitch out of the Group USA bullpen.
“There are certain times that come up, certain situations, especially with certain pitchers and things, that you want them to avoid this kind of thing, but also you realize the value it can provide for these guys to really compete at this level,” Boone stated.
“In some cases, even some of our pitchers, it forces them into having a better offseason ramp-up to get ready for this, and hopefully that’s something that serves them well moving forward. For the pitchers, sometimes you get a little bit worried about it. Position players, not as much.”
