At the time of this writing, Yankees’ manager Aaron Boone was reportedly under fire with his team winning just nine of its last 27 games, as they began the second half of the season. With Friday’s win, Boone raised his winning percentage to .600 in seven seasons.

On the other side of town, one-time relatively unknown Mets’ manager Carlos Mendoza is becoming more of a household name in the Big Apple, as his club has suddenly emerged as a postseason contender after the team’s disastrous 2023 season.

Such is baseball life in New York, but it has made for the expected and usual dichotomy between the two clubs.

In Philly, baseball lifer Rob Thomson has made the most of his opportunity from a former bench coach. And, yes, his name wasn’t instant recognition.

In this week’s version of my Behind the Plate column — past and present trends with the Phillies, Mets, and Yankees as well as the overall game — I’ll take a look at some low-profile and unorthodox managers from the three clubs as well as other ones throughout the league over the years.

Boone-Thomson connection ... Boone’s hire in December 2017 caught the baseball world by surprise, as the former player and ESPN announcer didn’t have any managerial experience.

Giants’ bench coach Hensley Meulens was viewed as the top candidate and Thomson, then the Yanks’ bench coach, was the other top candidate. Former Mets and Yankee Carlos Beltran and former Indians’ skipper Eric Wedge also were in the mix.

There is mixed speculation whether the Yanks will be buyers or sellers at the upcoming trading deadline. With that, there is growing restlessness over the Yanks being unable to win a championship since 2009, especially with Juan Soto’s production.

Yet, is Boone responsible if they fall short? The manager always is the fall guy, and Boone’s overall numbers are hard to dispute. However, it didn’t save former Yanks’ and Phillies’ skipper Joe Girardi, who won their last championship in just his second year and posted 910 wins in 10 years. Girardi’s broken clubhouse didn’t help.

Boone reportedly has been previously under the gun, and it will be interesting to see how this plays out. The imminent return of Giancarlo Stanton should help.

Bronx Bystanders ... Typically, the Yankees had a high-profile manager due to the nature of their market.

However, there may have been some that have slipped through the cracks over time. Here is my list: Bill Virdon, 1974-75 (142-124, was fired due to his feud with icon Bobby Murcer); longtime front office man Clyde King, 1982 (29-33); Bucky Dent, 1989-90 (36-53); Lou Pinella, 1986-88 (224-193); and Stump Merrill, 1990-91 (120-155).

When you see Pinella’s overall record, you wonder what happened. He had a fourth-place finish in 1988 and was replaced by Dallas Green.

Phil-A-Busters ... In this column, I have chronicled a number of ex-Phillies managers, so I won’t belabor the point.

Yet, here a few you may have forgotten: Bob Skinner, who took over for Gene Mauch, 1968-69 (92-123); veteran coach Lee Elia, 1987-88 (111-142); Nick Levya, GM Lee Thomas’ first hire (111-142); and how about Gabe Kapler, 2018-19 (161-163).

Mets-Morized ... Besides Mendoza, some other Mets’ managers who may have been forgotten through the years: former Triple-A manager Joe Frazier (not the boxer) led the club from 1975 through halfway of 1977 with an overall 101-106; coach Roy McMillan, who took over for Yogi Berra, 1975 (26-27); former Brewers’ manager George Bamberger, 1982-83 (81-127); and slugger Frank Howard, who took over for Bamberger (52-64).

Others are former Dodger Jeff Torborg, 1992-93 (85-115); former Phillies’ skipper Dallas Green, 1993-96 (229-283); former Astros’ manager Art Howe, 2003-04 (137-186); and colorful Jerry Manuel, 2008-10 (204-213).

If you’re a diehard fan, you may remember Salty Parker, who took over for Wes Westrum in 1967 (4-7); or Mike Cubbage, who took over for Bud Harrleson (3-4). Overall, Harrelson and Cubbage combined for a 77-84 mark.

And do you remember recent manager Luis Rojas, 2020-21 (103-119)?

Not Following the Book ... Over the years, the game has seen some rather unusual skippers in the dugouts.

In 1977, Braves’ flamboyant owner Ted Turner took over the reins of the club for one night in Pittsburgh on May 11, 1997 after his club had lost 16 straight and sank to 8-21 overall. Turner told manager Dave Bristol to “take 10 days off.”

Turner wore No. 27 and didn’t use a pinch-hitter until the ninth inning. Phil Niekro hurled a complete game in a 2-1 Atlanta loss.

The next day, commissioner Bowie Kuhn told Tuner that an owner could not manage their team.

In 1980, Padres play-by-play announcer Jerry Coleman went downstairs to call the shots, replacing Roger Craig. The Padres went 73-89 and Coleman returned to the booth in 1981.

There also was Toronto’s Buck Martinez, who became the Blue Jays’ color commentator in 1987 before he guided the team from 2001-02. Martinez went 100-115 and was replaced by Carlos Tosca 53 games (20-33) into 2002.

One of the more successful odd transitions was by former Astros’ pitcher Larry Dierker, who took over the team after being Houston’s color commentator. In five years, Dierker recorded four first-place finishes and an overall 435-348 mark, but he couldn’t win in the postseason. He returned to the booth in 2002 and was replaced by Jimy Williams.

Readers Write

Hi Jeff,

I read your column in last Monday’s Times News asking if anyone remembered the Meet The Mets song. I do, I’m a diehard Mets fan. The song went like this:

Meet The Mets, meet the Mets,

Step right up & greet the Mets,

Bring your kiddies, bring your wife,

Guaranteed to have the time of your life,

Because the Mets are really sockin’ that ball,

Hittin’ those home runs over the wall,

East side, West side, everybody’s coming down,

To meet the M.E.T.S. Mets of New York Town,

Also, in that same article you referred to a former Mets’ catcher as MARK Piazza. His name is MIKE. Keep up the great work.

All The Best,

George Berk

Palmerton, Pa.

Editors’ Note: Great stuff, George. Thanks again. Remember watching the opening credits and song. I know a Mark Piazza and sometimes mix them up.

Time Passages ... Each week, I’ll recall a game or a situation from the past.

Dierker became the Astros’ first 20-game winner in this history when he went 20-13 with a 2.33 ERA and notched 232 strikeouts.

But the Phillies beat him 7-3 on July 25, 1969 in the Astrodome. Don Money had three hits and two RBIs, and Johnny Callison and Rick Joseph each had a pair of hits. Grant Jackson (10-10) went the distance, allowing seven hits and recording eight strikeouts.

Dierker (12-8), who beat the Phillies earlier on May 7 and later on Aug. 17, allowed eight hits and struck out seven over 7.1 innings. He would go on to win eight of his final 14 decisions.

MoJo Rising ... After they were 25-33 at the end of May, Houston had won 27 of its next 40 games and had an overall 52-46 heading into Sunday’s game against Seattle. They pushed a game ahead of the Mariners into first place in the AL West for the first time this season under first-year manager Joe Espada.

He is another baseball lifer getting his well-deserved nod.

Final thoughts ... Mendoza isn’t related to the legendary shortstop Mario Mendoza, who gained fame for the “Mendoza Line,” referring to a player’s batting average hovering around .200. Mendoza spent nine years in the majors with an overall .215 average and hit under .200 in five of his seasons. Mendoza’s best year was with Texas in 1980 when he hit .245. Last season, the Phils were 48-41 at the break, and this year they were 62-34. There is a difference of nine games played.

Feedback ... Your comments are always welcomed at tnsports@tnonline.com