ANAHEIM, Calif. — Aaron Boone liked to point out that with a name like his, you don’t get booed.
But the Yankees manager certainly heard his fair share of them after he was traded to the Yankees in 2003 and struggled following his arrival from Cincinnati.
“I don’t think you ever like [the fans] letting you have it or getting booed,’’ Boone said in the wake of the Mets’ thumbs-down controversy, with Javier Baez saying Mets players have been turning their thumbs down after good plays in return for the fans booing them.
“But to get caught up and put a lot of energy into worrying about that takes away from what you have to do as a professional,’’ Boone said Monday before the Yankees lost to the Angels, 8-7. “Ultimately, you can’t let it take your eye off the ball.”
And as a player, you can’t afford to react the way the Mets — led by Javier Baez — have.
“Part of being a big leaguer is you’ve got to be able to handle the ups and downs and adversity,’’ Boone said. “The people that can handle that usually tend to survive a little bit better.”