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Aaron Boone’s decision to pull Max Fried before the seventh inning is one of the reasons the Yankees’ season is on the brink.
Now, the Yankees’ play-by-play announcer is questioning the manager’s explanation for why he pulled his ace at 102 pitches in a 3-1 loss in Game 1 of the wild-card round to the Red Sox.
Boone said after the game that he had initially planned to take Fried out after six innings, but after inducing a double play in that frame, the skipper said he wanted the lefty to face Jarren Duran — a left-handed hitter — in the seventh before exiting. Boone added that Fried did not ask to be pulled, but rather that he liked how Luke Weaver matched up against Boston’s order — which was sending up the eighth, ninth and leadoff hitters.
Three batters later, the Red Sox had the lead after a walk, double and two-run single.
After watching Boone’s comments, Michael Kay — who admitted he was initially OK with Boone’s decision — said on YES Network’s postgame show that he did not buy into the explanation.
“When I walked into the studio, I was all for the decision,” Kay said. “You don’t put your guy to where he can’t go, and he hasn’t gone that far all year. But when you hear Aaron Boone say, you know, after he came in in the sixth inning, just give me one more batter. Well, why? It’s the eighth and ninth batters in the lineup. This is your ace. This is the guy you gave an eight-year contract to. That’s why you give the guy the money to be that person.”
Kay said the decision, after hearing Boone’s comments, sounded like it was a “blueprint move.”
“To me, that sounds like a blueprint move. That’s not the time for Weaver,” Kay said. “That’s the time to keep in Fried. You keep Fried in until Fried can’t go any longer.”
On the flip side, Red Sox manager Alex Cora stuck with ace Garrett Crochet for a season-high 117 pitches to get through 7 2/3 innings.
The Yankees are now one loss in the wild-card round away from seeing their season end.
