There is no mercy rule in MLB, but New York's Aaron Boone thinks one being implemented might be a good thing.
The Yankees manager shared his thoughts on the idea Friday when addressing the 19-5 loss his team suffered at the hands of the Indians on Thursday.
"It's not fun to have to put in a position player"
— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) August 16, 2019
Aaron Boone discusses a mercy rule and how it could prevent injuries/bad situations during blowouts pic.twitter.com/EB6woa1GbN
“I think there would be a benefit to that,’’ Boone said. “You would probably eliminate a lot of the unwritten rules, people running or swinging. It would be like, if you get to this point after seven innings or whatever, there might be something to that and worth exploring.’’
Some of Boone's frustration stems from the fact he had to use DH Mike Ford on the mound for two innings against Cleveland. He'd rather avoid position players pitching.
“It is not fun to obviously put a position player in that situation,’’ Boone said. “For Ford and some of the guys it is fun, but sitting in my chair, you worry about hurting someone, and sitting there getting kicked in the mouth is no fun. I am sure there is something to that question.’’
New York is comfortably leading the AL East with an 82-42 record. It has a 10 1/2 game lead on the second-place Rays.
The Yankees have the best record in baseball (alongside the 82-42 Dodgers) and likely have plenty of meaningful baseball ahead. They'll have to settle with no mercy rule for at least the rest of 2019 though.