The New York Yankees had their stadium rocking late Tuesday night, and for a brief moment, it felt like a miracle comeback was brewing. Down two runs in the ninth, they loaded the bases with nobody out—the exact script fans dream of in October. But instead of fireworks, there was only frustration. Giancarlo Stanton struck out, Jazz Chisholm Jr. lifted a shallow fly ball, and Trent Grisham went down swinging. The Boston Red Sox, their archrivals, escaped with a 3-1 win in the Wild Card series opener, leaving the Yankees stunned and staring at elimination.
Fried does everything asked—and more
For six and a third innings, Max Fried pitched like a man determined to carry his team into the next round. The left-hander didn’t just put up zeroes; he did it with poise, navigating around baserunners and working through some questionable calls that didn’t go his way. Fried gave up four hits and three walks, struck out six, and forced nine groundouts, showing the kind of command that postseason rotations are built around.
After retiring the first hitter in the seventh, Aaron Boone made the call to the bullpen—a move that would ultimately decide the game. Fried looked like had more left in the tank, but instead of letting his starter fight on, Boone turned the ball over. It was the kind of decision that managers get second-guessed for in October, and this time, the critics have ammunition considering how shaky the Yankees bullpen has been.
Weaver unravels in critical moment
Luke Weaver was trusted to bridge the gap, and he simply couldn’t deliver. With one out and an 0-2 count on Ceddanne Rafaela, Weaver had the chance to shut the door quickly. Instead, he lost him for a walk—a mistake that instantly flipped momentum. Eric Sogard, the ninth hitter, followed with a double, and pinch-hitter Masataka Yoshida ripped a two-run single that broke Yankee hearts and flipped the score.
Weaver’s late-season struggles carried right into the postseason. Once the Red Sox hitters saw he couldn’t finish off Rafaela, they hunted mistakes and punished him. Fernando Cruz came in to stop the bleeding, but the damage was already on the board. Later, David Bednar gave up a backbreaking RBI double to Alex Bregman in the ninth, stretching Boston’s lead and giving them more margin for error.
Crochet silences Yankee bats
If Fried gave everything New York could have hoped for, Garrett Crochet gave Boston more. The lefty was flat-out dominant, looking every bit the ace the Red Sox envisioned when they handed him the ball. He threw 117 pitches, nearly carrying his team through eight innings, and struck out 11 without issuing a single walk.
Crochet gave up just four hits, one of them an Anthony Volpe solo homer that briefly gave Yankee Stadium life, and another a late single from the same shortstop. Other than that, the Yankees were smothered. Even when Paul Goldschmidt and Aaron Judge opened the game with back-to-back singles, Crochet immediately settled in, carving through the order like a surgeon who doesn’t flinch under pressure.
A chance wasted
That ninth inning bases-loaded opportunity will haunt the Yankees if Wednesday ends their season. Baseball, like life, doesn’t often hand out second chances in moments that matter most. To have Judge, Stanton, and Chisholm all come up with the game on the line and fail to drive in a single run is the kind of heartbreak that October baseball is built on. It felt like standing on the edge of a cliff, looking down, and hoping the ground might rise to meet you—only to realize there’s no saving drop.
Now, with Carlos Rodón set to face Brayan Bello in a win-or-go-home Game 2, the Yankees’ margin for error is gone. They’ll need Rodón to channel Fried’s intensity, the offense to finally wake up, and a bullpen capable of holding the line. Otherwise, one of baseball’s most storied franchises could see its October story end far sooner than expected.
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