Joe Torre offers advice to Aaron Boone amid Yankees' struggles

Joe Torre famously guided the New York Yankees to four World Series championships and offered some advice to current manager Aaron Boone amid the club's struggles. 

"Aaron played for me," Torre explained during a Thursday appearance on New York sports radio station WFAN, per Ryan Chichester of Audacy. "He comes from a baseball background. To me, baseball is a game of life. You play it every day. You have to try to eliminate the highs and the lows and find a middle you can keep. Don’t lie to them. You still have to tell them, 'Hey, we need to get better in this area or that area, and we can do it.'" 

According to Randy Miller of NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, Boone held a closed-door clubhouse meeting "that lasted just a few minutes" shortly after the Yankees fell to the Los Angeles Angels 7-3 on Wednesday night to complete a series sweep and a miserable road trip. Last-place New York has lost five of six following the All-Star break and entered Thursday evening trailing the first-place Baltimore Orioles in the American League East standings by a whopping nine games. The Bronx Bombers were three-and-a-half games back of a wild-card spot at that time. 

The Yankees have gone 15-22 since All-Star slugger Aaron Judge suffered an injured big right toe that could keep him sidelined for "days from now or weeks from now," per Boone. Torre acknowledged that Judge's absence impacts everyone associated with the club. 

"What the Yankees are going through now, it’s tough," Torre said. "It’s tough when you miss Aaron Judge. He makes players around you better. I think everyone is taking on more responsibility and pressure than they need to. But all of a sudden, you win three or four games, and you get your mojo back and start heading in the right direction." 

The Yankees have never missed the playoffs during Boone's tenure, but that streak is in serious jeopardy. Fair or not, many fans will call for Boone's job if the Yankees fail to qualify for the postseason.