New York Yankees legend Derek Jeter criticized Aaron Boone for a costly decision the manager made in the team’s first World Series loss on Friday night.
The Yankees’ World Series opener against the Dodgers lived up to its breakout success on Friday as Freddie Freeman hit a grand slam in a ten-inning thriller to seal a 6-3 victory in Game 1 for Los Angeles. .
It was an agonizing blow for New York after the Pinstripes took the lead in the top of the tenth, and many pointed the finger at Boone for the broken hearts in the Big Apple.
Boone pulled Gerrit Cole off the mound in the seventh inning after a single by Teoscar Hernández, after the pitcher had allowed only four hits and one run in 88 pitches.
Jeter, who was Boone’s teammate in the Bronx in 2003, gutted the decision on Fox’s World Series postgame show.
Aaron Boone (left) was attacked by his former Yankees teammate Derek Jeter (right) on Friday night.
“Look, I know we talk about this all the time and I don’t want to be one of those guys that says, ‘Back in the day, when we played…’, but we were talking about how when we played the Mets in 2000. Al Leiter pitched Game 6 and he threw about 140 pitches,’ Jeter began.
‘Gerrit Cole was dominating this game. He was dominating the game! And if you take him out after 88 pitches for I don’t know what reason, it’s a domino effect not only in this game tonight, (but) in the game tomorrow and in the rest of the series. I just think that when you have someone who is acting like Gerrit Cole did tonight, you leave him there as long as you can.
The ‘domino effect’ Jeter was referring to was the suffering he caused the Yankees’ bullpen when the Bronx Bombers ran out of pitchers.
From the seventh to the ninth inning, the Yankees burned Clay Holmes, Tommy Kahnle and Luke Weaver.
The game then headed into extra innings with a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the 10th, Boone turned to Jake Cousins.
However, with the Dodgers on first and second with one out, he brought in Néstor Cortés to face the high-pressure trio of Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts and Freeman.
The Yankees intentionally walked Betts, bringing Freeman to the plate when Cortes gave up the game-winning grand slam.
Boone’s decision to call up Cortés, who had not pitched since September 18, left Yankees fans baffled and furious.
Freddie Freeman hit a grand slam to seal a 6-3 victory in Game 1 for the Los Angeles Dodgers
Boone pulled Gerrit Cole off the mound in the seventh inning after he only allowed four hits.
“This guy needs to be fired,” said one fan on X, formerly known as Twitter, referring to Boone. ‘Do you like confrontation? Néstor has been on the couch for the last month but do you like the confrontation? Moron. Mysterious. Baffling.’
“I brought in a non-reliever who hadn’t pitched in five weeks to face multiple Hall of Fame hitters in some of the most influential plate appearances in baseball history. AMA,” wrote another, mocking Boone.
“Néstor Cortés hasn’t pitched in six weeks,” added a third. “Putting him in this place is the worst decision Aaron Boone could have made. Just incredible.”
“Aaron Boone sent Nestor Cortés to the World Series desert and then intentionally walked one of the worst postseason hitters of our generation to face Freddie Freeman,” another chimed in. “Good night”.
Even former Yankee Cameron Maybin was stunned by the decision when he posted: ‘No more thinking about it…leave Glayber in the damn game!!!;
The captain brought on Néstor Cortés, who had not pitched since mid-September, in the tenth
Speaking to the media after the game, Boone was tasked with defending his decision to include Cortés in the race.
“I just liked the matchup,” Boone said. “The reality is he’s been throwing the ball really well over the last few weeks getting ready for this.
“I knew with one out there it would be hard to double up on Shohei if Tim Hill throws him to the ground and then Mookie is behind him, that’s a tough matchup.”
“I felt condemned with Néstor there in that place.”