Assuming there is any sanity left in the New York Yankees organization, the 2027 season will be Aaron Boone’s last as manager. This will be his 10th. Even if he wins a World Series, the goal is to ride off into the sunset. What if he doesn’t? Well, there’s simply no logical reason for him to surpass the tenures of Joe Girardi (10 years) or come close to the extended tenures of Joe Torre, Miller Huggins, Casey Stengel and Joe McCarthy (all managed 12 years or more). That would be an insult to history.
So you would think the front office would do some prep work so that someone working under Boone in 2027 could possibly prepare for a transition. The Yankees didn’t do this with Torre or Girardi, but in this case it might have been the wisest move given the already complicated clubhouse dynamics that fans and pundits far suspect.
Which is why when news broke Wednesday night that Scranton/Wilkes-Barre manager Shelley Duncan was signing on to join Chad Tracy’s staff with the Boston Red Sox, there was legitimate reason to be somewhat concerned.
Red Sox insiders Chris Cotillo and Sean McAdam came out of nowhere with the development while Boston was still flying another former New York Yankee.
The Red Sox are hiring former MLB player and former AAA Yankees manager Shelley Duncan to Chad Tracy’s staff, sources and @Sean_McAdam tell me. Where he and Jason Bell fit into the mix is still to be determined.
– Chris Cotillo (@ChrisCotillo) November 5, 2026
What does Shelley Duncan’s departure mean for the future of the Yankees?
It’s not exactly the end of the world, but can anyone explain why the Yankees just didn’t offer him a promotion? Instead, they keep the exact same coaching staff under Boone despite the offensive underperformance and defense floundering in the spotlight? There’s no reason why Duncan shouldn’t have been part of a minor-league transition to try to tighten things up at the major league level. And that could have potentially paved the way for him to succeed Boone after 2027. At the very least, the Yankees might need a new bench coach with Brad Ausmus interviewing for the Astros manager job. Whether he gets it or not, one could argue they could use a different figurehead alongside Boone in the dugout, with Ausmus looking a bit redundant. Duncan is a guy who always wanted to manage, and he came back to the organization where it all started for him a few years ago.
Duncan had been the Yankees’ Triple-A manager since 2023 and won International League Manager of the Year honors in 2025. That year, they lost in the Finals. Regardless, he played a role in helping players like Austin Wells, Ben Rice, Spencer Jones, Cam Schlittler, George Lombard Jr., Elmer Rodriguez and others make the transition to the big leagues. This is the best youth move the Yankees have made since the 1990s.
If the Yankees want a veteran player who can relate well to younger generations as skipper, then Duncan seemed like a logical choice given his rise since 2015, when he became the D-backs’ Low-A manager.
The Yankees selected Duncan 62nd overall in the 2001 MLB Draft. He debuted in 2007, won a ring with the 2009 team, then played four more years in Cleveland and Tampa. He signed a minor league contract with the Reds in 2014, but only played in 14 games before retiring. After that, he immediately got into coaching and spent a decade working in baseball as a minor league manager, major league field coordinator and analytics coordinator.
That’s a pretty good resume that the Red Sox just got their hands on. And like many former Yankees who leave for the other side of the rivalry, we’re sure this one will work out well for Boston and make New York look stupid.
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