Trailing by seven runs in the eighth inning of Friday night’s ugly 12-7 loss to the Rangers at Yankee Stadium, Aaron Boone didn’t use switch-hitter Neil Walker to bat for the right-handed hitting Luke Voit against right-hander Chris Martin.

As it turned out, Walker was only going to play in an emergency because of a neck problem and an illness.

“He came with a little bit of a tweak in the neck and wasn’t feeling good, so [it] was kind of an emergency situation,’’ Boone said of Walker, who homered from each side of the plate Thursday. “He started not feeling well before the game.’’

The right-handed hitting Voit, who started at first base against lefty Mike Minor, delivered a two-run single in the sixth against Minor.

Walker is hitting .329 (23-for-70) with a .380 on-base percentage since July 9 and Boone said there is a chance Walker will play the outfield.

“I think there is a chance you could see Walk in the outfield one of these coming days,’’ Boone said of the infielder who has played two games in the outfield for a combined three innings this year. He had never played he outfield before in the big leagues.