The Yankees needed three outs to win Game 1 of the 2024 World Series, and they chose to call upon a pitcher who had not played in over a month to do the job.
That plan backfired as Nestor Cortes only survived 1/3 of the bottom of the 10th inning before giving up a walk-off grand slam to Freddie Freeman. The epic moment was proceeded by New York intentionally walking Mookie Betts in fear the former Boston Red Sox star would have been the one to play the hero.
The Los Angeles Dodgers went up 1-0 after Friday night, and Yankees fans were left wondering why Cortes was called upon in extra innings.
“Just liked the matchup,” Aaron Boone told reporters, per Anthony Castrovince of MLB.com. “The reality is (Cortes) has been throwing the ball really well the last few weeks as he’s gotten ready for this.”
Cortes suffered an elbow injury last month that forced him to miss the majority of New York’s postseason run. The left-hander chose to fight through it despite not being fully healthy. The All-Star pitcher admitted he “had all the confidence in the world” when his number was called, but fans questioned whether or not southpaw Tim Hill would have been the better choice.
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“I knew with one out there, it would be tough to double up Shohei (Ohtani) if Tim Hill gets him on the ground and then Mookie behind him is a tough matchup there,” Boone said, per Dan Martin of the New York Post. “So I felt convicted with Nestor in that spot.”
Instead, Freeman, who battled an ankle injury, put in a great swing to add to his postseason legacy. New York gets a chance to even up the World Series in Game 2 at Dodger Stadium on Saturday.
Featured image via Kiyoshi Mio/Imagn Images
