Aaron Boone & Mike Harkey on Baseball vs. Coronavirus | R2C2

Name: Aaron Boone & Mike Harkey on Baseball vs. Coronavirus | R2C2
Uploaded: 2025-11-14T10:34:26-08:00
Duration: 50 min 35 s
Channel: UNINTERRUPTED
Description: Mike Harkey and Aaron Boone discuss life during quarantine, focusing on the psychological and physical challenges of an uncertain baseball season. They…

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About this episode Mike Harkey and Aaron Boone discuss life during quarantine, focusing on the psychological and physical challen… AI summary

Mike Harkey and Aaron Boone discuss life during quarantine, focusing on the psychological and physical challenges of an uncertain baseball season. They highlight the importance of mental health check-ins, cautious player development protocols, and the role of sports in societal healing, while also sharing personal entertainment preferences and humorous anecdotes from their broadcasting and playing careers.

Key takeaways 4

Aaron Boone emphasizes that pitchers require a gradual build-up process similar to the offseason, noting that two months of isolation means players have 'no feel' and cannot be rushed back to full capacity, necessitating extended rosters and depth early in the season.
The conversation reveals a shift in social norms regarding physical contact, with Boone predicting the handshake may become obsolete post-pandemic, citing his own extreme caution and germaphobic tendencies as examples.
Boone identifies leadership traits in former players like Jorge Posada (quiet accountability) and Greg Vaughn (making everyone feel important), applying these principles to his current management style by maintaining regular contact with players to ensure mental well-being.
Harkey and Boone discuss the necessity of treating any shortened season as a legitimate championship opportunity, rejecting excuses based on game count and focusing on performance regardless of schedule length.

Notable quotes 4 AI-generated: wording and quote attribution may be wrong. Use the play link to verify.

“If you're out two months and guys say they were doing this you're still not gonna say okay well he's been doing this let's just throw him he's good for three innings nobody's gonna trust that we're gonna try to be as cautious as we can.”

▶ 12:34 Aaron Boone explaining why pitchers cannot be rushed back into game action immediately after a long layoff due to safety concerns.
“We're gonna be part of the healing of a country of the world... we have a duty to go out there and perform no matter what the situation is.”

▶ 23:07 Boone discussing the broader responsibility of athletes to provide normalcy and hope during the pandemic crisis.
“It's like the offseason again with no date that we never get back to... it's a weird thing right now.”

Harkey describing the psychological difficulty for baseball players facing an indefinite suspension without a return date.
“You look at all these guys that are max effort you don't see very many max effort guys last very long... having a nice easy catch out in the backyard crazy ass be able to do less and have more is the key on being a good pitcher.”

▶ 45:58 Harkey analyzing Mariano Rivera's pitching mechanics, highlighting efficiency and athleticism over maximum exertion.